


Eye of Poppy

by Pitkin, skimmonsfiction



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-05
Updated: 2019-05-26
Packaged: 2019-08-18 21:04:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 24,333
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16524623
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pitkin/pseuds/Pitkin, https://archiveofourown.org/users/skimmonsfiction/pseuds/skimmonsfiction
Summary: "I've got a grade IV glioblastoma in my cerebral cortex, but most people just call it The Terminator."





	1. The Terminator

Skye loathed chemotherapy. Of all the necessary evils in the world, she recognized chemotherapy’s importance in her life, whatever amount of it she had left, but that didn’t mean she had to like it. She appreciated chemo’s part in not dying, that was about it. This sentiment aside, others would have never suspected that riding the back of a Lyft because she’d be too fatigued and queasy to drive herself home after gave Skye the kind of anxiety that often preceded panic attacks. The nurses, doctors and any of the patients she’d ever befriended didn’t know that she always had her ride, whether it was a Lyft or a friend or relative driving her to her appointment, drop her off a little ways away from the doors so she could work of the courage to ignore the rollercoaster of dread that rolled around in her gut trying to tell the voice in the back of her mind to convince her to run away. Instead, they saw the version of Skye that made it past the automatic doors whooshing closed behind her. This Skye had a bright smile on her face and warmly greeted everyone she passed as if she had not a worry in the world. 

This Skye made her way through the building with her back straight, her shoulders squared and her eyes up. Today she’d had enough energy to work a bit of makeup magic on herself without having to cake the makeup on. As a result, she’d blended away a large amount of the dark, tired circles around her eyes. Over the weekend she’d also finally bit the bullet and had gone for a haircut. Skye wasn’t quite ready to fully part with her hair and go for the pixie she’d gone with the last time she’d relapsed but she attributed her hesitation to no longer being a teenager who, at the time, felt immortal and sure she would beat her cancer into remission just like she had as a child when she’d been diagnosed the very first time as a four year old. Her dark brown hair was still thick but it now hung to just about halfway between her jawline and her shoulders at about the halfway mark of her neck. She tugged off the loose knit hat that she’d lazily thrown on it on her way out of her apartment and stuff the material into the messenger bag slung crosswise along her torso. 

Taking the stairs, something she always forced herself to do unless she absolutely didn’t have the energy to make it, Skye climbed to the fourth floor and duck into the hallway by the elevators. She walked the ward to the main nurses’ station where she had to check in. Skye considered herself dressed up for the occasion, wearing a pair of well worn jeans that had once been nearly skin tight on her but were about half a size too big on her now, the knees full of random wear spots, rips and tears that she’d worn into them over the years. A loose belt held the jeans to prevent them from falling down from her hips. A pair of well broken in black leather boots were tied on her feet over a pair of thick comfy socks and under the black moto jacket she sported a size-too-big white baseball shirt with black sleeves that were rolled up to just below her elbows already and held a henley design with three buttons that went down from the center of the collar. 

“You’re late,” The head nurse said, though she was smirking at Skye. 

“Fashionably so, Myrtle, as always,” Skye winked at the woman, having only lifted her eyes from the sign in sheet as she printed her name, wrote the time down, wrote out her memorized patient identification number and then scribbled her signature with a flourish. She glanced around the room. “Have you read the room today? What’s the energy like?” 

“What’s the energy always like here?” Myrtle retorted dryly as she took the clipboard back and nodded her head toward the main area. “You know the drill - take a seat and I’ll send Elena your way.” Myrtle was already focused on the computer screen, clicking away on the keys to enter Skye’s information. 

“Myrtle, you flirt, cut it out - it’s unethical to hit on your patients,” Skye tutted her tongue and pulled her bag from crosswise over her torso to rest along her right shoulder. Without waiting for a reply, Skye turned and stepped into the main area full of recliners of differing spaces between them. Instantly she caught sight of someone she’d never seen before in the chemo dungeon (her term, naturally). Then again, Skye hadn’t been coming back for terribly long, just a handful of weeks now. Still, it was a new face. The woman had her head bowed reading a book but Skye felt drawn toward her. She could see from the distance that the woman was attractive but she’d never experienced a magnetism toward a person that had her feet moving before her brain caught up. 

With a graceful ease, she dropped her bag to the floor next to the open recliner next to the reading woman and sat down, tucking her left foot under her on her way down. “Good morning, Gorgeous,” Skye flashed a brilliant smile full of well taken care of white teeth and a sparkle of mirth twinkling in her eyes. “What’s a pretty girl like you doing in a dump like this?” She let the natural lilt of her tone practically singsong the question out, not at all abashed about the fact that she was absolutely flirting with this stranger despite the fact that the stranger was plugged into an intravenous line pumping poison through her veins in an attempt to eradicate the evil within. Skye was moments away from being plugged into a similar device with her own medicinal poison. 

At first, Jemma didn’t even realize she was being spoken to. She hadn’t been called pretty in the last several weeks and she didn’t consider herself to be either. She wore a scarf over her head, mostly to keep warm, since she no longer had any hair, and her eyes were always tired and sore. She never managed to get any makeup on, so she didn’t see how she would be considered attractive. But the gorgeous woman who just plopped down in the recliner next to her was in fact speaking to her. She looked too thin and sickly for this to be her first time here, but she still had her hair, which led Jemma to believe that she was coming back. She was observant in that way, trying to figure out everyone else’s stories before they told her.    
  
“I suppose there’s only one reason anybody ends up here.” Jemma chuckled and humored the woman, closing up her book and stashing it in her bag beside the chair. She rubbed her eyes and took a closer look, and she wondered how the stranger looked so carefree when she obviously had some form of cancer. Maybe Jemma could ask for her secret. “So... you come here often?” Jemma cracked the awful joke. She might as well flirt back, she didn’t exactly have anything to lose and the stranger was undeniably attractive and had an intriguing personality.

Skye’s eyes, and most of her face even, brightened when the woman looked her way. She'd learned long ago about the real things that made humans beautiful and they weren't the stereotypical aesthetics the movies, television shows, commercials, magazines and social media made them out to be. The unknown woman’s eyes were tired, sure, but Skye could see the curiosity churning behind them. Skye practically beamed when her flirty little comments earned her not only a reply but a chuckle with them. She was already shaking her hands out of both her jackets when the follow up question came.    
  
"Just long enough this time to have a usual," she gave the woman a wink and was already reaching to pop the buttons on her shirt without considering whether it would make the woman uncomfortable or not.    
  
"Hello, Skye, back for more I see," A Latin woman with a mild accent who wasn't all that much older than the two of them approached in scrubs, gloves already on her hands, one of them filled already with what she'd need to hook Skye up to her machine.    
  
"Hair o' the dog that bit me," Skye confirmed with a shrug. She reached for her collar and tugged the material of her shirt down and grinned at the nurse. "And who could blame me for it with such lovely nurses like you, Elena, to administer it?" She teased.    
  
"If you're not careful," Elena reached out with her free hand and felt over the thin skin above Skye's surgically implanted permanent port line. It was the third time in her life she'd had one, she was more than used to and very at ease with the routine. "People will begin to talk and next thing you know, you'll be in a twelve step program rehabbing from it," Elena aligned the needle with the port and slipped it into place and secured it before hooking the line to Skye's shirt and moving on to properly set up the medicine in the machine that would deliver it through the intravenous line now connected to Skye’s port.    
  
Skye let out a snort of laughter. "That's the dream," she chirped and just like that her eyes and smile were fixed on the stranger beside her once more, her shirt collar still hanging lopsided. "What's your poison, miss...?" She held her right hand out across the space between the to offer and official greeting, arching her eyebrows slightly as she waited to hear the woman's name.

Jemma watched Skye’s interaction with Elena with curiosity and amusement in her eyes. She managed to carry the metaphor that this was a bar, and Jemma was more than happy to continue with it. She’d much rather envision them ordering drinks and wasting away time they had plenty of than to think about their actual situation.    
  
“I’m in for brain cancer, I’m afraid. My name’s Jemma Simmons.” Jemma offered her hand and they shook hands quickly. Elena offered them hand sanitizer after because both of their immune systems were compromised from the cancer, chemo, or both. “I’ve got a grade IV glioblastoma in my cerebral cortex, but most people just call it The Terminator.” Jemma made her own joke about her short lifespan. It was the only way to get through it with her held held high. “What’ve you got?” She asked. Normally, asking people about their cancer was impolite, but in a room full of people that had it, it was more like swapping information like your favorite color.

Skye worked the hand sanitizer around between her fingers, along her palms, knuckles and tips of her hands and wrists absently, just like the second nature reflex it was, until it was dried on her hands. Normally she waited until she knew there were coughers nearby at the chemo center before she resorted to a face mask, unless she has a cold of her own she didn't want to further spread, but she preferred to start without it if she could. She let out a low whistle as The woman, Jemma, laid out her diagnosis. Skye felt a twinge of sadness in her chest at the information. She understood the power of deflecting jokes though. "You ought to play that one up if you spot any of the skater pre-teens next time - we may be able to convince them that they call it 'The Terminator' because it's not chemo in your IV, just government genetic retro conversion nanobots to turn you into a terminator," she grinned mischievously at Jemma. "How’s your Schwarzenegger impression?" She asked with a mirth full chuckle of her own.    
  
She came back to herself after a moment and said, "I'm Skye Coulson," she officially introduced herself. "I'm saddled up with Acute Myeloid Leukemia with a bunch of Willy Wonka chromosomal qualifiers that basically insist that this has infiltrated my blood genetically and refuses to stay in remission. So basically, this is not my first rodeo," she paused and tilted her head slightly. "It's my third, actually." Third time's the charm, right? Did that bode well for her or the disease, though?

“I’m on my second try.” Jemma shared. “I started with a grade III glioma and I had a year between treatment for that and diagnosis of my current terminator friend.” She giggled a bit. If this was Skye’s third time here she couldn’t imagine how long she’d been sick. That was Jemma’s one blessing, she supposed, that she wouldn’t have to fight and be miserable for long.

Skye couldn't help it, the way her muscles relaxed and her smile stretched even further across her face and cause her cheeks to crinkle her eyes at the corners. People in this place didn't often outright giggle and it was quite a welcome and pleasant sound to Skye's ears. "Ouch, that's an awful cancer shadow sticking around," she cringed in sympathy. "I was first diagnosed when I was four." It was only fair to give Jemma her own history. "Docs gave me the gift of remission for my sixth birthday, the label of 'cured' for my eleventh. Relapse one hit at seventeen, remission again about a year later, told me I was cured five years after that and now here we are again," she rolled her eyes and smirked as she patted the spot on her chest just next to the port implant and IV line. "Fate's a cruel mistress," she joked as she set her head back but kept it turned toward Jemma’s direction. Talking to others, if they were willing of course, some weren't, sure beat burying her face in a phone, computer or tablet to pass the time.

“That sure is the biggest understatement of the year.” Jemma nodded. Fate hadn’t played them the kindest hand, especially not Skye. At least Jemma had been able to live a full and healthy childhood and young adulthood before her cancer struck her at age 25. She was 26 and still alive, but she doubted she would make it to 30.

“So what do you do, Skye?” Jemma asked with a smile. “Outside of the hospital, of course.”

"I design videogames," Skye beamed and unabashedly proud smile at Jemma, though this was the simplest way of explaining that she stared at computer screens for hours on end looking for errors that caused bugs and flaws in her designs. Still. She had pride in her work and she didn't see how that could be bad. "How 'bout you?" She asked in turn, genuinely interested in the answer as her eyes took in all the intricate aspects of Jemma's face from her warm eyes to the dark circles around them, the moles, freckles and curves, the lines, the headscarf, everything. Skye watched her with interest and with the intention of memorizing her new friend's face and reading her features. She wanted to know if she started boring or annoying Jemma so she could let her rest if or when needed, of course since she'd intruded on Jemma to begin with.

“I was a librarian.” Jemma replied. She thought it was funny that they seemed to be in competing industries. Books and video games had always been enemies in the entertainment world. Not that it had any effect on what she thought of Skye, but it was ironic, that was all. “If you couldn’t tell.” She held up the book she had been reading among the apple devices in the room and put it back in her bag. She wanted it to be clear that she’d rather speak to Skye than read her book.

Skye’s face brightened, her eyes sparkled a bit with excitement. “Really??” She asked. Her eyes shifted to the book Jemma pulled momentarily back out and she grinned. She let out a wistful sigh as she rested back against her chair, shifting to pull her leg out from under her before she pressed a button on the side of the chair to bring the leg rest up. Skye knew exactly when the chemo would affect her in certain ways and she knew sitting on her leg would be a good way to get stuck with stiff, swollen joints later even if it was her favorite position. She kicked her boots off her feet and set the on the floor next to her bag. “The library was my best friend growing up once I got sick,” she blurted. “I still had to walk around all masked up and keep my distance from people, but it was more fun disappearing in stories instead of standing off to the side watching people have fun doing things I wasn’t allowed to do, was too sick to even daydream of doing or had to avoid because of germs.” She didn’t sound sad about this information. It was just a nonchalant fact of her existence. “But, stories for games have to come from somewhere, so, I guess it worked out in my favor,” She added with a shrug and a chuckle. She tilted her head and looked at Jemma as her brow furrowed slightly. “What do you do now?” She asked, having noted that Jemma said she ‘was’ a librarian. 

“I abandoned my job as a librarian to chase my dreams of becoming a journalist. I decided to go undercover as a cancer patient to write a truly meaningful article about the lives of the terminally ill.” Jemma said in a tangent. A look of shock passed over Skye’s face and Jemma couldn’t keep a straight face any longer. She started laughing so hard that tears brimmed in her eyes and her stomach hurt. After a few moments it died down and she wiped the corners of her eyes. 

Skye totally fell for it and for a moment she did look positively aghast at Jemma’s ‘confession.’ The moment Jemma cracked and began laughing though, Skye exhaled the breath she’d been holding and began to snicker in kid. She had decided already after Jemma’s first response to her that she liked the woman, this only further cemented the feeling in Skye. If it weren’t for the germs, she would have reached over and jokingly swatted at Jemma’s knee. Instead she yanked a tissue from the box on the small table between their chairs, balled it up and tossed it at Jemma as their laughter died out with a couple breathless humming sighs.    
  
“I’m not a journalist, I really am sick.” She chuckled. She adjusted her clothes so they didn’t catch on her port and twisted in her recliner a bit so she was facing Skye. “I was a librarian. Now I fight cancer.” She said simply. “I’m not getting out of here again. They don’t call my tumor a terminator for no reason.” 

Skye almost wished Jemma’s journalist story was real, she realized as it meant the cancer Jemma said she had would then be fictitious. Dastardly deed of lying to cancer patients aside...at least this new friend wouldn’t be on the chopping block then. Skye wiped a laughter tear from the corner of her eye and then studied Jemma for a long silent moment, without judgement, just curiosity. She leaned on the armrest closest to Jemma and mock whispered. “Let me let you in on a secret,” She paused for effect and then smiled broadly at Jemma. “You aren’t dead yet. You are very much alive.” She understood how it might not feel that way and for all her outward bravado, Skye sometimes needed reminding of his too.  

“Maybe so.” Jemma grinned. She didn’t quite see herself as being alive, since she stayed in the hospital day and night and dealt with more symptoms than she often felt she could manage, but the way Skye said it made her feel like it might possibly be true. She already knew and accepted that she didn’t have a chance to survive, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t live.    


“Definitely so,” Skye gave her a wink, one that was most definitely on the flirtatious side even though she had no idea of Jemma’s possible sexual persuasion. She’d flirted back earlier though, hadn’t she? Perhaps she was just being friendly but Skye chose to believe otherwise until corrected.   
  
“How often do you come in?” Jemma asked. She was curious about the possibility of running into her new friend again. For the first time in a while she was trying to find something to look forward to that wasn’t in a book.

“Twice a week,” Skye answered. She leaned closer again, slightly and added in another mock whisper. “But I’m not opposed to more frequent visits provided the invitation comes from a beautiful lady such as you.” Skye’s grin was crooked but radiant as she said it and she was more than a little proud of herself for the quick suggestive comment. 

A moment later, a heavy duty germ mask was hovering in front of Skye’s mouth and nose, making Skye’s eyes crossed toward the end of her nose as they focused on it. She shifted her gaze. “Easy, Casanova,” Elena’s accent sung out with an amused smirk as her freshly gloved hand held out the mask for Skye. Skye had her own of course but she knew this was a warning that if she was going to keep inching closer, it would benefit her shoddy immune system protect her mouth and nose. 

“Oh Captain, my Captain!” Skye leaned back into her own recliner space as she took the mask and gave Elena a salute. She shot a side eyed grin and a wink toward Jemma. She wasn’t going to put the mask on initially but one of the patients another nurse was setting up in the row nearby them sneezed into her sleeve and Skye heard in her periphery comments about a cold so she slipped the mask on, glad it was one of the ones with the activated charcoal layers but also with the extra breathable port on it so she wouldn’t be stuck with the lower part of her face heating up. 

“Careful,” Elena said to Jemma with a lopsided grin of her own. “This one’s a troublemaker,” She nodded her head toward Skye and then strolled away again to check on the others since it seemed Jemma and Skye had it under control and she felt better now that Skye had a mask on. Elena glanced at the clock, knowing there was a certain amount of minutes left before Skye would need a basin to retch into. Elena knew all the particular patients that had clockwork-like reactions and Skye was one of them, despite her carefree outward appearances. 

“I quite like her this way.” Jemma chirped back to Elena, soon letting her eyes glance over to Skye again as she purposefully caught her bottom lip between her teeth. She wasn’t oblivious even though she hadn’t flirted in quite some time. Her life clock was ticking down, so it would be perfectly fine to enjoy a little flirtatious banter with a beautiful woman before she went to meet her maker, if they existed.

Skye turned to Jemma, leaning closer because the mask was in place but also so she didn’t have to shout louder to counter the mask muffling her speech. “Have you met Elena’s secret fiance yet?” She asked.    


Elena shot them a look and Jemma snickered. Skye just had a way about her that made her ever so entertaining and attention demanding, and Jemma couldn’t help but allow herself to be pulled in by it.    
  
“Spill.” Jemma instructed Skye. Anything to keep the conversation going so she could watch the light in Skye’s eyes as it grew and changed and the way she smiled as she spoke.

Skye made a show of waiting for Elena to be further out of earshot then turned to look at the clock. “In about...thirty seconds, he’s gonna come through that back hall door,” Skye nodded to indicate a door by the farthest corner of the room. “He’s in one of the research departments, works on the mechanics of all kinds of crazy robotic prosthetics. Never comes in with his lab coat on but you’ve probably seen him and haven’t realized it,” Skye babbled. “Freakishly tall, dark, bald and handsome. If you need contraband smuggled in, he’s your guy, all you’ve gotta do is engage him in rousing conversation about horror and sci-fi horror movie plots. Asking him which apocalypse he thinks will befall humankind first is always a great started so you can see which one has taken the lead in a given day base off of research articles he’s read in trade journals since your last conversation with him,” She leaned closer and added. “Call him Alf, it’s his favorite nickname,” There was mirth in her eyes as the mask hid the impish smile across her face. Even from across the room, Elena was shaking her head as she’d heard bits and pieces on her way by of what Skye was telling Jemma. 

“You’re not talking about Mack, are you?” Jemma raised a brow. She’d been curious about Skye’s little trouble making setup of Elena’s fiance until she realized who she was talking about, and it made a wide grin stretch across her face to realize she knew him too. “He works with Fitz.” She said matter-of-factly, proud that she could keep up with Skye’s hospital gossip. “I didn’t know they were engaged though.” She sighed, leaning back in her chair and staring at Elena analytically. “Fitz will be disappointed, he was harboring a bit of a crush on Mack.” 

“ _ Secret _ ,” Skye mock whispered, “Fiance,” She chuckled. It was a pretty open secret. Okay, the fact that the two were dating was but not the engagement part, except for the nurses in Elena’s unit and some of the patients who paid attention. Not all of the patients did as they were wrapped up in their own struggles and conditions of course. Skye had spotted it right away but, then, she was rather curious and she had already shown Jemma that she could (and frequently did, she supposed) insert herself into a person’s life with a winning smile and a witty comment or few. “I don’t think I actually know Fitz,” and there was a rarity for Skye!  “But I think I’ve seen them leaving for lunch or dinner gabbing about work still in what sounds like foreign language to me - is he the one with the curly hair?” 

“Yes, and the Scottish accent.” Jemma nodded. It was hard to miss, as they were in Texas, but then again so was her own accent. They didn’t exactly fit in when it came to conversation. It was probably her nationality that got Jemma hired at the library so quickly.

Skye nodded. “Ahhhh, yeah, yeah! He’s the one that got his arm stuck in the vending machine trying to retrieve a toffee crisp the other day!” She cheered as the memory came back to her with a laugh that bubbled up from her throat. Skye liked Jemma’s accent but felt it was rude to just outright ask something like ‘so where are you from?’ People asked her that often based off of her own looks having grown up as half Caucasian and half Chinese. She didn’t think she had an accent. She’d grown up in multiple states so she didn’t have a Texas accent, though she supposed she had an amalgamation of accents from the places she’d lived, which, to Skye, meant she had none. 

“That sounds like something he would do.” Jemma laughed and almost pouted for him. Her poor friend had a tendency to embarrass himself in front of others.    
  
Just as Jemma was starting to have a good time, her head began to throb and she knew the beginnings of a migraine level headache were present. Her eyes squeezed shut and her hand went to her temple, but Elena caught the signs quickly and came over with a small cup of pills, which she placed in Jemma’s free hand, and a syringe, the contents of which she quickly emptied into the IV connected to the port in Jemma’s chest. The mild opioids would help with her joint pain and her headaches, and it was the time of day where she needed her anti-seizure medication and a few other necessary medications.    
  
“Down the hatch.” Elena handed Jemma a small plastic cup of water and Jemma followed orders, swallowing down all her pills and leaning back into the recliner to try to relax a bit more. 

Skye frowned slightly behind her mask when she saw Jemma’s eyes squeeze shut. She knew Elena was on the ball so she didn’t fret too much and sure enough, Elena came swooping in with the save. Skye ignored the whole germ barrier thing for the moment and reached out to rest a gentle hand along Jemma’s forearm as she leaned back. Elena started tutting at her but Skye rolled her eyes - good naturedly of course. “I won’t touch my face with this hand until I’ve doused it in sanitizer,” She solemnly swore as her thumb absently grazed along Jemma’s arm. Satisfied, though she narrowed her eyes at Skye to silently warn her that she better keep that promise, Elena was off to gather items for another patient she knew needed some specific medications as well. “Would you like me to let you nap a bit?” Skye asked Jemma, trying to speak loud enough to be heard around the mask but softly enough to try not to hurt Jemma’s head any further.   
  
“No, the distraction is nice.” Jemma smiled, still with her eyes closed. The light touch made the hairs on the back of her neck raise in a good way. She wasn’t used to affectionate touch like what Skye was giving her right now, but she was sure she could get used to it. She turned her arm so her palm was facing up and she placed her free left hand over Skye’s on her arm, but only because Skye promised to sanitize after. The last thing she wanted was to get Skye sick. “We both know sleeping isn’t really an option anyway.” She murmured. It wasn’t uncommon for people to get sick during chemo treatments and Jemma was no exception, especially when she was having a migraine.

Admittedly, Skye could feel the beginnings of her usual nausea. She was dreading unceremoniously puking in front of Jemma but there was no use in fretting over the fact that it was going to happen. It happened like clockwork for Skye for every treatment she’d ever had even as a child and a teen. She’d won a bet with Elena the first time Elena had set her up for chemo and ever since, Elena was always there right on time to bring a big, square basin for Skye to puke into. Skye glanced at the clock. For now, she had some time still and she planned to keep the physical contact she’d initiated as long as possible. 

Among the more important things Skye’d learned from all of her combined experiences with the disease, was how alienating it was for the patient. It was clinical, of course. No one wanted to be the one to spread what was normally a ‘harmless’ germ to a person with a compromised immune system, but the plain fact was that the fallout was a steep price. Hugs and simple kissed to the cheek could be deadly viral weapons. Human contact was at an all time premium and every instance of it could kill Skye. It likely wasn’t as bad for Jemma with her particular ailment, but for Skye it was the most isolating part of her condition. Seeing Jemma having a side effect reaction had simply prompted Skye to offer up the kind of comfort she longed for in her moments of discomfort. She would have gladly pulled her hand away if the touch seemed to make Jemma uncomfortable of course but, thankfully, it seemed to do the opposite as she felt warmth spread from her hand up her arm as Jemma’s hand covered her own. 

“If you could snap your fingers and be cured,” Skye said, much preferring hypotheticals to dwelling on the discomfort of the chemo dungeon, “Where would you go and what would you do?” 

Jemma took a deep breath and tried to keep the contents of her stomach where they were, instead focusing on the sound of Skye’s voice and her soft touch. It was more comforting than her book had been, but she was still worried about Skye’s health in the situation too. She supposed as long as they got that hand sanitizer it would be alright, but she wasn’t sure.    
  
“I think I would get a dog or a cat.” Jemma said. She didn’t mind where she lived, but she’d never been able to find true companionship. “Any pet really, anything that would currently outlive me. What about you? What would you do?” 

Skye smiled, albeit a little sadly. She didn’t rush an answer from Jemma, just waited patiently for a response and kept an eye both on Jemma’s reactions to whatever she was feeling and the monitors on the machines. She knew Elena was keeping an eye out along with the head nurse at the station but that didn’t mean Skye couldn’t check up just in case she needed to snag Elena or one of the other nurses if Elena wound up busy with another patient. She breathed in through her nose and considered the question a moment. “I’d find someone who could stand being in close quarters with me for long periods of time and see the world with them, through my eyes and theirs - make our way through street food vendors in every corner of the world, hug my way through every culture I can find, I think.” It was the exact opposite of the isolation she’d been forced into for so many lonely years of her life. 

“T-minus eight minutes and...thirty seconds, Nena,” Elena told Skye on her way by to let Skye know that she hadn’t forgotten about her and the basin. Skye just nodded and gave her a quick thumbs up. Normally she would have jokingly put up a fight about Elena calling her what amounted to ‘kiddo,’ to engage her in a little banter happy squabble when she knew full well Elena was just using it as a term of endearment stand in for ‘kiddo’ or ‘baby girl.’ It was all affection between Skye and Elena and both knew it. Skye couldn’t imagine choosing the kind of job Elena had and couldn’t even imagine the fortitude it took to get up and come into work not only willingly but with compassion and love in one’s heart and still the ability to care and joke with patients when she knew which percentages of them would end in death. She always tried her best to show her appreciation for the nurses that she encountered, no matter how bad a day she was having at any given point because she always wanted people like Elena to know how valuable the effort they put in was to someone like Skye, or Jemma or the other patients.  

“That sounds really nice, Skye.” Jemma whispered so she wouldn’t agitate her head. “Really nice.” She repeated slowly, like she might possibly be falling asleep. Her eyes opened a few seconds later though and she gave Skye’s hand a squeeze.    
  
“I hope you find them.” Jemma told Skye. What she wanted to say was that she thought it would be nice to be that person for Skye, had she been physically up to it and had any manner of faith that she would walk out of the hospital on her own two feet. But they didn’t know each other very well at all, they were near strangers, so she refrained.

Skye fell quiet, initially, hearing the sleepy and purposefully quiet tone as Jemma murmured. She wanted to let her rest her eyes if she needed. Just as soon as they’d closed, though, Jemma’s eyes popped open again. Having started to focus on her own nausea and keeping it contained though she knew resistance was futile, Skye’s facade slipped a little, just in her eyes as they lost a bit of their shine. Her odds, at this point in the game, weren’t much better than Jemma’s. The only difference was that she might have longer to whither before her body gave out. There would be no someone to experience the world with because it wasn’t in the cards for Skye. She understood the power of hope, though, so she tried to cling onto the daydream of it and for the most part that got Skye through another day, hour, minute or second, whatever was necessary. Just as quickly as it came, the well of sadness was hidden once more. 

“Maybe I have,” Her eyes crinkled at the corner once more as she grinned and gave Jemma another one of those winks. Before she knew it, Elena was flying around the corner of their aisle with the deep, square basin in her hands as Skye was beginning to think she was going to blow early. She squeezed Jemma’s forearm lightly but didn’t let go. “Scuse me a sec,” She murmured, the color in her face having shifted to a green pallor. With her free hand she pulled the mask away quickly and had time to wrap her free arm around the basin and lean over to drop her face by the rim of it. 

Elena quickly snagged up her short hair to keep it from falling into the spray as the contents of Skye’s stomach forced their way up. Collecting her hair to hold it back with one hand, Elena gently patted along Skye’s back and checked the color of what was coming up. “What have I told you about skipping meals before you come here, hm?” She scolded Skye. 

“What’s,” Skye paused to retch into the basin again. Afterward, she spit the sour leftovers in its wake. “The point,” another quick retch, this one mostly bile. “F’it’s just gonna come back up?” Skye felt a bit woozy and swayed a bit in her spot. Elena was about to lean her back but this time when her stomach lurched again, nothing actually came up until her stomach spasmed twice more. 

“You know it only makes you weaker,” Elena sighed and helped Skye lean back, pushing the recliner so it was angled back but kept Skye still partially sitting up. She moved the basin and used a wet cloth to clean off Skye’s face. “Not to mention it damages your esophagus and your gums in the process, Nena,” She frowned. “I’ll be back with water and some toast.” she told Skye, who just nodded. Elena took the full basin away. She sent another nurse around with a cup of water and a clean basin that was placed on the table. Skye sipped on the water briefly and put the mask back over her mouth and nose. She exhaled a sigh and rolled her head to look over toward Jemma. “The glamorous life,” She murmured with a slightly weaker smile than before. 

“You really shouldn’t skip meals.” Jemma lightly scolded. She’d been struck silent during Skye’s heaving episode because of her comment about finding that special person. Was it wrong to hope that Skye meant her? Was it wrong to hope that their little flirtations could mean something? More importantly, was it wrong for Jemma to even hope for something between them if she knew she would die first? It was all very difficult to process, but what she did know was that it hurt her inside to see Skye vomiting and suffering.   
  
“Just wait until you see me go at it, I might be able to outdo you.” Jemma joked, trying to keep their conversation light but also relevant.

A snort of laughter escaped Skye and shook her shoulders a bit. “If you do, I’ll break you out of prison when you’re feeling up to it and take you on a date to the fancy steakhouse around the corner from here,” She wagered. Did it count as a date if it was made on a wager of chemo-induced puking? She wondered. 

“You’ve got a deal.” Jemma grinned. Even if she knew it would be difficult or near impossible to get her out of the hospital for a night, it was a nice idea to let turn over in her mind.    
  
Eventually, Jemma was done with her chemo session and she knew she would have to go back to her room. “I won’t be able to stay, since the recliners are so quickly cleaned and prepped for the next victim- I mean patient,” Jemma smiled and jested, “but I’m in room 413 if you want to stop by when you’re through.” She offered just as Elena and another male nurse came over to help her into her wheelchair, plug her into her mobile IV with her fluids, and prepare her to go back to bed.

Skye was sad to see Jemma go but glad one of them was done with their treatment for the day. She released her grip on Jemma’s arm and, as Elena was right in front of her and because it was necessary, reached for the sanitizer pump on the small table and loaded her cupped palm with it. She worked her hands together again, coating them with the sanitizer and rubbing them together until they were dry again. “413, wouldn’t miss it for the world, Jemma Simmons,” Skye had pulled the mask away from her mouth to say it as she flashed Jemma another brilliant, if much sleepier, smile. “Try not to get into too much trouble without me in the meantime,” She grinned as the male nurse began to wheel her away. Skye watched until she was gone and then put her mask back in place and set her head back down, feeling quite a bit dizzy. Elena promised not only to bring her more toast, but to sit and watch her eat it before she walked away to make good on the promise as Skye groaned and closed her eyes. 

After finishing half of the toast Elena brought her, Skye had pulled her phone from her bag, popped her earphones in and set a timed playlist for the rest of her session. She barely managed to snag a small nap. When she woke, about ten minutes before her treatment was over, Elena made her drink some more water under threat of delaying her ‘date’ with Jemma to hook her up to an IV for fluids if she didn’t drink more. Skye complied mostly because she wanted to be able to go and visit Jemma. While Elena was tied up with some patients, Skye spotted Mack trying to sneak a visit. With Elena occupied, Skye waved him over. 

Mack squinted at Skye as he looked her over. She looked a bit more giddy than normal, more awake considering she was at the end of a treatment session. “What’s her name?” He teased in a singsong lilt. 

“Oh hush!” Skye swatted at his arm as Mack laughed. 

“It’s Jemma,” Elena supplied on her way by. 

“Traitor!” Skye called after her as Mack arched his eyebrows and laughed. Skye turned toward him. “Think I can cash in that favor you owe me?” She asked. 

Mack let out a snort of laughter. “What favor? I don’t owe you a-,” 

“Who helped you work out that software snafu from two weeks ago?” Skye reminded him with a cheeky grin. 

Mack sighed. “Oh that,” He said. Skye flashed him one of those brilliant smiles. “Okay, what do you need?” Mack asked. Skye laid out her plan for him to Mack’s great amusement and then he was off before Elena could catch wind and stop him. 


	2. Think I Love You

Jemma paced about her room, clutching her IV pole and leaning on it for support. She hadn’t walked in quite a while, but she wanted to build up some strength to hopefully be able to physically afford an outing with Skye, if she would take her up on it of course. She headed to the bathroom and grimaced at her reflection in the mirror. Her face was pale and thin and she had dark circles under her eyes. She pulled her grey scarf off of her head and even though she thought she had gotten used to being bald, the sight disheartened her.    
  
Maybe she could lighten things up a bit. With great effort, she walked over to the closet and found a beanie that Fitz had given her with humor. Jemma had initially found it appalling, as it was yellow and housed a radiation warning symbol. It was supposed to be a joke, as Jemma got radiation therapy every day, but she never really appreciated it like she thought Skye might. Today she slipped it on and headed back over to her bed so she wasn’t exhausted if and when Skye decided to visit.

After disconnecting from her machine, Skye tugged her hoodie back on but left it unzipped. She slung her messenger bag back over her right shoulder and tucked her leather jacket over her right arm. She headed for Jemma’s after thanking Mack and bidding him and Elena a good day, then she headed for Jemma’s room with the items Mack had procured for her. In her right hand she had a small plastic bag. In her left arm she had a very fresh looking bouquet of fresh, bright colored and mixed flowers of all types. Skye still had her mask on, mostly because she was technically supposed to avoid flowers on account of the fact that they might have mold on them, but she’d be able to bring the mask down once they got the flowers situated and she doused her hands in sanitizer...again. 

Skye counted the door numbers as she walked and stopped just before Jemma’s open door. She took a steady breath and used her knuckle to wrap lightly on the door frame. “Hey, Gorgeous,” She grinned as she turned into the doorframe. Her eyebrows arched when she spotted the knit hat on Jemma’s head and her eyes shined with delight just before she tipped her head back slightly and laughed out loud. “Perfect,” She chirped as she nodded her head to indicate the hat. 

“Skye!” Jemma grinned when her new friend entered the room, and with flowers no less. “You came.” She seemed to sigh in relief, like she wasn’t sure Skye would come at all. She hadn’t had company in a while. Her parents had put all their money into getting Jemma transferred to the well known cancer hospital in Texas and paying for her medical bills, but it didn’t leave enough for them to stay in the United States to be with her. It was difficult, but they had to put Jemma’s health over her visiting time. At least they video chatted when the time difference was acceptable.    
  


“Course I did, you invited me after all,” Skye’s radiant smile was back on her face, visible in the other features of her face since she still had the mask on. A cup of coffee and the renewed energy of spending more time with her new friend had recharged her energy greatly. Normally she would have been ready to take a Lyft home and crash for at least a few hours before getting work done. Now she hoped to replace her nap with an afternoon visit with Jemma. 

  
“It suits me, don’t you think?” Jemma joked about her hat, wiggling her eyebrows to gesture to it, shifting it a bit in the process. “Are you feeling better?”

“Perfectly,” She grinned about the hat and gave a firm nod as she chuckled. “I’m much better, now,” Skye’s eyes gleamed at her own flirtatious comment. While she was an affectionate person naturally, she didn’t usually ham it up quite so much, especially when she didn’t know a person’s sexual preference but, well there just seemed to be something about Jemma that kept drawing it out of her. Skye wasn’t all that inclined to rein it in unless she saw signs that Jemma felt uncomfortable. 

Skye walked over toward Jemma’s rolling table, setting her messenger bag and jacket on an empty visitor’s chair on the way. From the plastic bag she pulled a cheap glass vase Mack had grabbed for her with the flowers. She unwrapped the bouquet from its paper, set them properly into the vase and grabbed up Jemma’s pitcher to fill in the water. She made a mental note to bring Jemma fresh flowers each time she came to the hospital to brighten her room. After she poured the plant food packet into the vase with it, she wheeled the table over next to Jemma’s bed. “I hope you like flowers. I mean I have a backup plan if you don’t, but,” She shrugged and settled to sit on the edge of the bed by the lower part of Jemma’s legs. 

“I do like flowers.” Jemma couldn’t stop grinning and she gently ran her finger over some of the colorful petals. It was one of the nicest gestures she’d received in a while and she couldn’t believe Skye was being this nice to her after meeting her only a few hours ago. She was sure she was a bore, lying there in her hospital bed, but what else could she do?   
  
“I’d still like to know your backup plan, though.” Jemma said, not quite flirtatiously, but enthusiastic enough to let Skye know she was genuinely curious.

Skye grinned but glanced at her watch. “It should be here in about...ten minutes,” She glanced up at Jemma and finally pulled the mask down her face and below her chin, leaving it to hang loosely around her neck for now. She kicked her boots off and shifted to sit a bit more on the end of the bed, leaning back against the board at the foot of it. “How’re you feeling?” She asked Jemma. “How’s your head?” 

“So it’s from the outside world.” Jemma concluded with a joking tone. She hadn’t really had access to anything outside the hospital in the last month unless it was through a screen, so the prospect was exciting. “My head feels a bit better, but it could just be the drugs talking.” She confirmed. She was on opiods often now, which wasn’t necessarily good, but she was dying anyway. 

Skye chuckled but nodded. Truth be told, with her energy restored, she was eagerly awaiting their delivery from the outside world with renewed vigor. “Good,” She smiled. “Please do let me know if you get tired of me.” She added just to be sure Jemma knew she could make her leave at any point. She hoped Jemma wouldn’t of course, but she wanted all the bases covered. “Are you hungry at all?” Skye hoped she was, since the surprise backup plan was food related. 

“Oh my god, please tell me you ordered food.” Jemma nearly gasped when Skye asked her. She instantly ran several different possibilities of food through her head. Pizza, chinese, even McDonald’s would taste like heaven. “I haven’t had anything but hospital food in a month.” Jemma was suddenly sitting up more than before, not having to rely on the back of the bed for support.

Skye’s face fell aghast. “You poor babe…” She practically gasped. “That’s barbaric!” She made herself another mental note that she wasn’t going to allow Jemma to go so long without real food again. If her cancer was going to terminate her without prejudice, Skye wasn’t about to let her get away with going out with a terrible hospital palate. Before she could say anymore, there came a knock from the doorway. 

Mack held two paper bags up. “Are you the hooligans who ordered delivery? The nurse’s station is downright scandalized,” He smirked at them both as he stepped into the room. 

“They’ll live,” Skye joked. She covered her broad grin with the mask and headed over to gather the bags from Mack. “Thanks, Alf,” She tucked the bags into one arm and gave him a quick half hug with the other as Mack made a face at the nickname but still smiled much in the way an older brother would at a little sister. 

“Just wash your hands and all when I leave so Elena doesn’t murder me,” Mack made the plea. He looked at Jemma. “Make sure she does it, alright?” He asked as Skye moved her mask just long enough to stick her tongue out at him. 

“Lucky for you, I’m prepared.” Jemma leaned over to the table on her right and grabbed a bottle of lemon scented hand sanitizer, which she handed to Skye after squirting some on her own hands.

“Enjoy and don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” Mack called over his shoulder as he left them be after casting one last little smile between them.    
  
“What is it?” Jemma asked eagerly. She could smell that it was something delicious, but couldn’t quite tell what. She’d been having trouble identifying some sounds and smells recently, her doctor said it was because of her cancer and its effect on her cognitive abilities, but either way it smelled good.   
  


Skye set the bags down on Jemma’s rolling tray and quickly stepped away to move the flowers over to the windowsill. She rolled the table over Jemma’s lap and grabbed two plastic cups from the water pitcher at the end table. She returned to the bed and sat down on the other side of the table, crossing her legs. She squeezed some sanitizer into her hands and rubbed them together quickly then pulled her mask down to hang about her neck again. 

“This, my friend,” She unrolled the larger bag first. “Is a Chinese takeout feast,” She began removing containers from the bag. There was pork fried rice, Mongolian chicken, vegetable lo mein, egg rolls, egg drop soup and steamed dumplings. Chopsticks and various plasticware, fortune cookies and sauce packets were turned out from the bag. “Plus,” Skye said with a bounce of her eyebrows and grinned. “a bit of contraband.” From the brown paper bag next to it, she pulled a bottle of sparkling strawberry wine. It wasn’t like they were going to get completely fall down drunk or anything. Sipping on a little bit of fizzy wine with their food was a perfectly agreeable treat in Skye’s opinion. If she was going to do this, she was going to do it in style. Knowing now that Jemma had had a month of hospital food, she felt it was even more appropriate. She meant what she said when she told Jemma that she wasn’t dead yet. She wasn’t but if that was going to be the eventual case, living now was even more important. She opened the bottle and filled the plastic cups up halfway then set it aside and looked over at Jemma to gauge her reaction. 

“I think I love you.” Jemma joked as she stared at what was a huge treat for her. She didn’t know how alcohol would mix with her treatments, but she wasn’t going to have that much and honestly she didn’t care. If she died without having alcohol or other normal things again, what was the point of fighting the cancer?    
  
“I don’t even know where to start.” Jemma grabbed a pair of chopsticks and broke them apart, but she grabbed for the carton of fried rice since it was the most likely food to stay down. “Thank you, Skye, truly.” She grinned. She took her first bite and nearly moaned as she chewed for a moment and swallowed. It was the first meal she was having that didn’t include soggy chicken, flavorless mashed potatoes, or overcooked green beans.

Skye’s cheeks flushed, something more noticeable mostly because her pallor wasn’t quite what it used to be thanks to the leukemia but she was still grinning that crooked Cheshire sized grin. She watched, waiting, so Jemma could pick out what she wanted first. She beamed a happy, and somewhat proud, smile at Jemma’s reaction to the food. “You’re very welcome.” Skye picked up the Mongolian chicken container after breaking one of the other pairs of chopsticks. “I promise you, I won’t let you go that long without a decent meal again,” She said in earnest before she brought a load of chicken and onion to her mouth. She sighed, relieved that her stomach wasn’t rolling too terribly anymore at the moment. 

Jemma had a hard time not scarfing down as much as she could. She forced herself to take small bites, chew thoroughly, and take little breaks in between so she was less likely to vomit it up later. She didn’t want to waste the best meal she’d had in weeks by losing it as soon as she was finished. She didn’t even care that it was junk food, she could use some extra weight anyway. She even sipped some of the wine, but didn’t drink the full half cup.    
  
“Quick, put away the wine, the Enforcer is coming.” Jemma hissed. She tried to stuff the food back into the brown bag but Dr. May definitely saw it through the window as she walked by. She stopped, walked backward to the door, and entered with her hands on her hips.   
  
“Is that wine I smell?” She asked harshly. Jemma tried to smile innocently, but they both knew they were screwed.

Skye glanced at Jemma but didn’t rush to stuff anything anywhere. The food wasn’t out of bounds and what were they going to do anyway? Kill them? She grabbed the wine bottle with his cap screwed on and hidl it under the blankets by her legs for Jemma’s sake. She’d picked up Jemma’s cup by the time the doctor had back tracked. “Sparkling strawberry,” Skye nodded and held the cup out. “Come toast to our health and not leaving poor Jemma and her Terminator tumor to eat  _ only _ terrible bland hospital food for a solid  _ month _ \- Can you believe she’s even survived that??” Skye’s warm smile never left even with the stern scowl on May’s face and the way she was standing with her hands on her hips. If they were screwed, why hide it? Doctor May had to see the cruelty in making someone eat only hospital food for a full month and, more over, seeing as Jemma had a specific prognosis, this wasn’t going to make or break her treatment. They all knew it. 

“Alright.” May huffed and gave in, but she didn’t seem happy about it.  “Don’t come crying to me when you feel like it was a whole bottle instead of just a cup.” May tutted and turned to walk out of the room.    
  
“Yeah, I’m not looking forward to that part.” Jemma chuckled. She admired Skye’s ability to stand up for what she wanted, even if it wasn’t good for her current health. “But thank you, still.”

“Thanks, Doc!” Skye called after May, admittedly exhaling a sigh of relief that morphed into a chuckle. She was glad May didn’t tear their heads off and the giant gulp of wine she’d chugged down was now sitting rather warm in her belly. She put the cup in her hand, Jemma’s former cup, down on the table and then leaned over to pump some hand sanitizer into her palms. “I’m hoping the food will be enough to counteract it, myself,” She chuckled as she rubbed her hands together until the sanitizer dried from them. She picked up one packet of duck sauce and emptied it out onto the waxy bag for an egg roll she’d just pulled out of it. Looking up with just her eyes, she felt the overwhelming need to point out, “You have a beautiful laugh.” It was a warm sound and Skye was sure the warmth in her belly would have been there without the wine if she’d just coaxed a few more chuckles, giggles or snickers out of Jemma. 

At this, Jemma blushed. The other times Skye had complimented her, she had said it in a playful, sing-song type of tone, but this time, Skye said it quietly and purposefully, and it made Jemma actually believe it. She could feel the warmth in her cheeks from the flattery and she felt the need to share her own opinion.   
  
“And you have the most wonderful smile, as well as the most beautiful heart.” Jemma reached out with her patient-banded left hand and brushed her fingers against Skye’s cheek for just a moment before withdrawing, wondering if it had been too much. Before she got to see, though, Fitz walked in with a wheelchair. 

Skye was very glad she wasn’t attached to a heart monitor when Jemma’s fingers touched her cheek. Living alone in this city, for treatment purposes, and being sick, well, it wasn’t often she had personal contact, especially of an intimate kind like that. Her heart skittered swiftly around her chest. Her cheeks flushed and then the moment was interrupted and she quickly ducked her eyes to her lap with a nervous, bashful smile.    
  
“You know what time it is, Jemma.” Fiyz sighed, patting the back of the chair. He was her Medical Radiation Physicist and also her friend and he knew how stressful radiation therapy was for her, with her face covered in the mesh mask and pinned to the table. Jemma’s face fell and she grabbed for Skye’s hand without thinking about it, giving it a squeeze.    
  
“I have to go, but you can come back anytime. You know where to find me.” She smiled softly before she got out of bed. Another nurse came in to make Jemma’s IV mobile and get her into the chair. 

Skye glanced at the wheelchair as the intrusion more than Fitz. Her eyes snapped back to Jemma and she gave her hand a little squeeze. She nodded. “I’ll be sure to abuse that invitation,” she promised, the bright smile returning to her face with ease. “I’ll make sure Elena puts the leftovers somewhere so you can eat some more later,” She added just to make sure Jemma knew she wasn’t going to leave her stuck with that hospital food when there were plenty of leftovers if she got hungry. She was also going to leave her contact info on a piece of paper on the night table for Jemma too, she decided, so she’d be able to text or call or email or whatever if she got bored. 

“Well in that case, I won’t say goodbye.” Jemma said as she got situated in the wheelchair. The nurse hooked her IV bag to the wheelchair’s pole and they waited for Jemma to give the all clear to wheel her out. “Just see you later.” She smiled.

“See you soon, Jem,” Skye watched her go with that smile still on her face, despite the fact that she felt sad that Jemma had to get whisked away from their fun time for something terrible. When she was left alone in the room, Skye cleaned up the mess she helped make. She packed away the food and put it back in the bag. She tied her boots back on, hid the wine in Jemma’s end table drawer and straightened up the bed. 

Finally, she tore a piece of paper from a notebook in her bag wrote down her mobile number and her email address then scrawled a note.  _ Hey, Gorgeous! I hid the wine in your drawer. I’m giving the leftovers to Elena. I’m sure she’ll let you know who to get them from later. My info’s up top if you get bored and need some company - use it often! ;)   _

_ Sweet dreams!  _

_ See you soon, yeah?  _

_ ~ Skye  _

 

She left the note on Jemma’s pillow before she tugged on her leather jacket, slung her messenger bag crossways over her torso and took the leftovers bags, swiped one of the fortune cookies from the table and left the room. She took the bag to Elena, got another dousing of sanitizer in her hands that she rubbed dry, pulled her mask back on and pulled her phone up to call for a Lyft to get home. It’d turned into a longer day than her normal chemo days but Skye was riding pretty high on cloud nine as she made it home and peeled her way out of her day clothes all but her baseball shirt and the boyshorts she’d been wearing under her jeans. She tucked into bed for a nap after setting an alarm on her phone so she could wake up later to get some work done and hoped she’d be talking to Jemma again soon, before her next chemo appointment even. 


	3. Surprise Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **Warnings:** this chapter will make you hungry!

Jemma stared down at the notebook paper in her hands, just brushing her fingers over Skye’s handwriting on the page. A part of her wondered if Skye leaving her number was as significant as the swap of a phone number in a bar or any other location where people flirted. She liked to think it was. 

  
She didn’t use it for the remainder of the day she met Skye and through the night, wondering how soon was too soon to contact her. She’d never been one to obsess over the little details like that, but she’d also never wanted to see someone so immediately after they left. Her head hurt and she was nauseous and tired, as she didn’t sleep much, but before she could really think about it, she put Skye’s number in her phone and facetimed her.

Skye had slept a good deal of the afternoon after she’d returned to her apartment. Because of it, she spent a good deal of the evening and the night working on her computer. Sometime around three in the morning, she fell asleep again after shutting down her computer, washing her face and tucking back into bed. She managed to get some restful sleep before the sun coming through the blinds woke her and she spent about half an hour trying to decide if she wanted to sleep some more or force herself to get out of bed when her phone started ringing. 

Skye snatched the phone off of her nightstand and clicked on the lamp on the nightstand. She didn’t recognize the number but it was facetime and made an educated guess - it had to be Jemma, right? Maybe she just really hoped it was. While still on her side in bed, Skye answered the call and a brilliant smile stretched across her face as she saw Jemma in the phone’s screen. “Good morning, Gorgeous!” She greeted in a happy, if still slightly thick with sleep, tone. Without her makeup on, Skye was much paler and the dark circles around her eyes were much more pronounced, but her eyes were alight with joy at the wake up facetime surprise regardless. “What’s the good word?” 

“Oh, I just wanted to say hello to the beautiful woman that gave me the best meal in my life last night.” Jemma practically sang out. She knew at this point that Skye was flirting with her, as she’d analyzed all of her actions all night long, contributing to her insomnia. She had firmly decided that she was going to try to live the rest of her life by pursuing Skye, who had clearly already given chase herself. “Dare I ask for a second hospital date?” Jemma blurted. She never had anything to do, but she didn’t know about Skye. She just hoped she was available.

Skye's cheeks flushed slightly at the compliment. She felt more awake almost instantly, her heart alight with glee as Jemma requested a second date. "Hell yeah you can!" She blurted enthusiastically, not bothering to filter her response as she grinned. "When's the best time for you and what would you like from the outside world?" She asked right away.

Jemma had a cheeky grin on her face and she suddenly didn’t feel so exhausted. She had a renewed energy that was very much unlike her since her stay in the hospital started. She had to think for a moment on what she wanted, and she decided that she would let Skye bring her something again if next time Jemma paid for it.    
  
“I have been craving pizza and ice cream, though the latter may be hard to sneak in without it melting.” Jemma suggested with a chuckle. It had been ages since she’d had anything sugary and she was going to go all out if she was going to eat junk food.

"Don't you worry your pretty little head over the hows! Your wish, Jemma Simmons,is my command," she beamed a reply, more than a little encouraged by Jemma's renewed vigor. Jemma was not dead yet and Skye was determined to make sure she knew it and very much in favor of spending more time with Jemma as well. "I'm gonna need a list of your favorite pizza toppings, your ice cream flavor of choice and any other toppings you want with that too," she said, already forming the plot in her mind on how she would make this happen for Jemma just to watch her smile and hear her laugh.

“Surprise me.” Jemma challenged, cocking her head to the side a bit and smiling. She hoped Skye didn’t think she was just being friendly for the special meals, as she really was interested. It was Skye’s charm and her happy-go-lucky personality and attitude that drew Jemma in so fiercely. She wanted to get to know her.

Skye liked a good challenge so her smile stretched wider for a moment before she squinted her eyes at Jemma on the screen as if this would give her the answer of what to order. “Are you allergic to any foods?” She probably should have asked this the day before when she’d ordered food, Skye supposed. “Or is there anything at all you consider sacrilege for pizza toppings?” 

“I’m not allergic to anything.” Jemma shook her head. “As for the toppings, I don’t know... wow me.” She shrugged. “Before cancer, I would have vetoed a lot of things on pizza and often went with blander flavors, but now that I’m dying, I figure I’ll try anything since I may miss out on it completely if I pass anything up even once.”

Skye’s smile showed off most of her teeth. “That’s the spirit!” She chirped. She was very happy to hear this from Jemma after the reminder she’d given her that she wasn’t dead yet. “Do you want to be wowed for breakfast or shall I come up at a different time?” she asked, unsure if Jemma was scheduled for any treatments today. She hoped they were able to give her breaks between them. Back to back treatments, she could only imagine, made it hard to function at all. Skye felt a little guilty that she wasn’t jumping back into work after waking up but she’d worked longer yesterday and last night than she’d intended so her guilt feeling was rather fleeting. 

“Well I have radiation on weekdays and chemo on Mondays. Today is Wednesday, which means I just have radiation this afternoon.” Jemma went through her schedule with Skye on the phone, looking up at the ceiling as she tried to remember what day it was. They all blurred together when she spent them all watching television and reading while waiting around for treatments and medications. “Other than that, my schedule is pretty open.” She laughed. It wasn’t like she had anywhere to be.

Skye listened to this info and then glanced over to the clock on her nightstand. She looked back over at Jemma on the phone. “Give me about an hour and a half and I’ll be there to blow your mind,” She said. “Sound good?” It could give them the most amount of hours to spend before Jemma had to do her radiation treatment in the afternoon. Her mind was already racing on the possibilities for the pizza toppings and the ice cream itself and how she was going to keep the ice cream cold. She was excited both to splurge again on the food to enjoy with Jemma and also to just go spend time with Jemma and get to know her better. 

“I won’t be going anywhere.” Jemma laughed. She supposed that was the one nice thing about being in the hospital, she had the very predictable schedule. “I’ll see you soon.” She waved at the phone before she hung up. She sprang out of bed with more energy than she’d had in a while and headed to the bathroom to freshen up for Skye’s arrival.

_______________

Skye waved and said goodbye. Once they’d hung up, she quickly called a pizza place that was nearest the hospital because she wanted it to still be hot when she brought it in but also because she knew it was a great pizza place. She ordered the pie in quarters so she could get four different sets of toppings. She let them know what time she’d be arriving and when she hung up she raced for the bathroom for a very quick shower. She went with the barest makeup application today, not wanting to overdo it and also because of time. She let her hair air dry, which left it wavier than it had been the day before. She tugged on the same jeans she’d worn the day before since they weren’t all that dirty. She put a bra on today because she was going to be going into public places, though she did consider skipping it again during most of her shower. A slightly over sized white t-shirt went on top of it with just a bit of the front tucked loosely into her jeans. A belt was necessary to keep the pants from slipping. She threw her leather jacket on over it after tying on a beat up pair of converse to her feet. A loose knit hat went onto the back of her hair leaving her hair sticking out in waves from underneath it. 

Into her messenger bag, she tucked a box of playing cards and a travel dominoes case just to give them an extra bit of silly fun after their meal. Her phone charger went into the bag and her phone in her back pocket and then she was out of the apartment. She made a trip to the grocery store where she grabbed a small cooler bag that had a shoulder strap on it. She bought a pint each of mint chocolate chip ice cream, passion fruit sorbet, and salted caramel gelato along with a box of ice cream cones and some rainbow sprinkles. She bought a bag of ice and a container of table salt. In the parking lot, she dumped the ice into the cooler bag, dumped a good deal of salt on it to drop the freezing temperature of the ice and then buried the pints in the cooler and zipped it shut. 

Her travels were a bit easier today as she was in her own car rather than taking Lyft. With her cooler bag set on the passenger seat with her messenger bag, she was off again, this time to the pizza place. She grabbed them a few drinks from the pizza place too, a sprite, a bottle of iced tea, a mountain berry powerade and a coke, just in case they wanted something else other than water. She tucked the drinks into the extra space in the cooler and then finally went to the hospital. She made it to Jemma’s room about ten minutes later than she intended but she had both her messenger bag and the cooler bag over her shoulder and the pizza box held in her left arm. With a big grin on her face and a spring in her step, she knocked on the door frame when she arrived and gave Jemma a cheerful, “Good morning, Gorgeous! I hope you’re hungry!” as she stepped inside the room. “Or are at least prepared to be wowed,” She teased. 

No matter how many times Skye called her gorgeous like that, Jemma still blushed, feeling undeserving of such a title, especially in her current disheveled state. She had intentionally tried to look nice for Skye, as she cleaned up in the bathroom and even tied a brightly colored scarf around her head to match the flowers Skye brought her, but she ended up falling into a fit of vomiting and switched to the easy radiation beanie after her scarf fell off. Even the beanie was a bit lopsided on her head, but she found she didn’t really care. Skye would understand.    
  
“Good morning, Beautiful!” Jemma chirped right back. They already had their own little greeting starting up and it made her feel special. “I’m ready to be wowed by unhealthy food! How are you?” She asked out of real curiosity and concern. It wasn’t just to be polite when it came to Skye.    


Skye pushed the door to Jemma’s room shut with her foot, hoping to keep from bothering other patients from having to smell the pizza aroma wafting and also maybe keep Doctor May from barging in on them with their outside food again. She set the pizza box down on Jemma’s rolling tray and the cooler next to it. Her messenger bag and the bag with the cones, spoons and sprinkles went onto the visitor’s chair and then her leather jacket joined it. “I had a really excellent wake up call and have been feeling awesome ever since,” Skye answered, preferring to focus on the things that made her feel wonderful rather than the fact that she knew her energy would probably wane a great deal come the afternoon. She’d deal with that later though. For now, she felt awesome. “How about you? How’s it going today? I hope the wine didn’t give you too much trouble yesterday.” She said in earnest. She’d worried over the evening and night while she’d worked that she might have inadvertently made Jemma feel awful with the contraband. She was hoping it wasn’t too terrible, thought.  “Which do you want first - pizza or ice cream?” she asked. 

“Well I was sick this morning, but there’s no way to tell if it was the wine, the chemo, or the cancer.” Jemma laughed. She was already eyeing up the cooler and it was clear, at least to her, that her decision was made. “Dessert before the meal, the only way to live when you’re dying.” She said matter-of-factly.

Skye tried not to frown at the news that Jemma had been sick. Obviously it was a fact of life for both of them and while they both could use some extra weight on them, she hoped her food related treats wouldn't make Jemma worse for wear. "I can't argue with that logic," she grinned and unzipped the top. "I have an assortment of options here if you'd like to know about my wares, Miss," Skye gave an over the top flourishing bow and flipped the cooler lid open. "Mint chocolate chip ice cream, salted caramel gelato or passion fruit sorbet," she chuckled as she grinned over a Jemma. "You can take a whole pint if you want or I have cones and rainbow sprinkles to put to use too." She pulled the table over next to the bed and say on the edge of the bed near Jemma's  hip, closer than where she'd sat by Jemma's lower legs the day before.

“I’ll try passion fruit.” Jemma said and reached into the cooler. She had already asked for a couple plastic spoons before Skye got there, so she reached for the drawers on the other side of the bed and grabbed them from on top. She handed one spoon to Skye and stuck the other vertically into the ice cream once the lid was popped off.    
  
“Cheers?” Jemma suggested, holding up the little pint of ice cream.

"Will you, now?" Skye teased as she took the spoon from Jemma with an impish grin. She grabbed the mint chip pint herself and popped the lid off. "To hospital dates and dessert for breakfast," she replied as she tapped her pint to Jemma's before bringing it back and scooping a small spoonful into her mouth. She closed her eyes and exhaled a somewhat dreamy sigh. She couldn't remember the last time she actually had ice cream.

“I’ll eat to that.” Jemma smiled and took a spoonful of her own ice cream. It was honestly the best thing she’d eaten in a long time now and she was positive she could finish the whole pint on her own without thinking twice about it. She also didn’t want to eat just the one flavor though, and she wanted to push things forward a bit with Skye, let her know how she felt, so she got a spoonful of ice cream and held it near Skye’s face instead of her own.   
  
“Trade a bite?” Jemma offered. She realized a moment after she said it that she could kill Skye with her germs, and her eyes widened. “Wait, don’t get sick, here,” she grabbed a new plastic spoon from the nightstand and got a bite of ice cream from the side she hadn’t eaten out of yet. “Ok there, now try.” Jemma giggled and offered again.

She wanted to, especially with the implication as Jemma offered to feed her the spoonful, but she was aware of the germs and it was still some time out from when she was due for a red blood cell transplant to help boost her immune system. She was just opening her mouth to say she couldn't share a spoon however much she wanted to, but Jemma suddenly found a better solution. Skye’s grin stretched crooked across her lips. "If you're not careful, Jemma Simmons, I'm going to fall head over heels for you," she hummed in a singsong lilt just before she opened her mouth and took the offered bit from the spoon. She pulled the treat off the spoon with a slow linger as she sat back, closed her eyes and let the taste coat her tongue as she let out a moan of pleasure. "Damn...do I know how to pick 'em or what?" She joked  with a lopsided smirk after she smiled. “Thanks,” she added softly for Jemma's thoughtfulness on the germs. 

“Don’t thank me, you’re the one who bought and brought it. I should be thanking you.” Jemma began a bit of a ramble to cover up her excitement about Skye’s previous comment about falling for her. It made her flustered beyond belief and she was just glad it wasn’t completely obvious on her face. At least she hoped it wasn’t. “Next time the meal is on me, but I can’t promise anything better than jello.” She chuckled and took another bite.

Skye's eyes worked their way around Jemma's face, really taking it in as she ate another spoonful of her ice cream. "I've no doubt it'll be a jello to happily die for," she quipped. She angled the mint chip ice cream toward Jemma. "I think I have some spoons in one of my bags to" She arched her eyebrows to see if she should grab one for Jemma and actively resisted every impulse she had to scoot closer so she could kiss Jemma. Skye couldn't remember hating her immune system as much as she did right in that moment since...at least not since she wasn't allowed to go to her best friend's carnival and petting zoo themed seventh birthday party because of the double whammy potential of germs from a large group of humans and double the animals. She'd cried for days over that. Skye blinked a moment and tried to clear the memory a she licked a small stray bit of mint ice cream from the corner of her mouth. 

“Perfect.” Jemma grabbed a new spoon to scoop a bite out of the mint ice cream. They couldn’t share for long or they’d need an armory of clean spoons, but it was a kind gesture and it was the least Jemma could do in return for what Skye had done for her. She let the bite melt in her mouth and when she swallowed she grinned at Skye to silently thank her again.    
  
“Let’s hope I have room for pizza after all this.” Jemma pointed out. A pint of ice cream was a lot for her stomach, especially since she hadn’t been eating much lately or been able to keep down what she did eat. Her tolerance for large amounts of food was nowhere near what it had been before her cancer treatment started.

Skye offered up a warm, rather affectionate smile as she chuckled. "You simply must save room!" She insisted. "I have four different kinds of pizza in there!" She nodded to the pizza box, propped her empty spoon to hang down in her mouth and reached for the pizza box lid to lift it up so Jemma could see that each quarter of the pizza had different toppings. One quarter was plain, one had beet pesto sauce with kale and goat cheese, one had caramelized peaches with fresh mozzarella, basil and prosciutto and the last held garlic, artichoke, spinach and chives. Skye pulled the plastic spoon from her mouth and pointed them all out. "I wanted to give us a well rounded pizza adventure," she smiled.  

“What an adventure it shall be!” Jemma laughed as she scooped out a rather large spoonful of her ice cream to sit in her mouth for a bit.    
  
They chatted some more about food and favorites, sticking to light topics and just generally getting to know each other. It definitely felt like a first date, but thankfully without the awkward tension of trying to impress each other. Eventually they finished their pints of ice cream, but just as Skye opened up the pizza box, everything changed. Jemma’s lighthearted mood was gone and she felt a sense of impending doom as her legs involuntarily seized and she jumped slightly in the bed. Her toes were curled against her will and her legs were stretched straight, even quivering slightly. Jemma knew it was the start of a seizure episode, so her hand flew to the call button on the bed and her eyes shot over to meet Skye’s. She didn’t want her to see her like this, like she was dying, even though she was.   
  
“Y-you should g-go.” Jemma stammered with no explanation, unable to control her words.

Skye felt the mood shift and her muscles tensed. Her brow furrowed and she was just about to ask Jemma if everything was alright when Jemma’s legs twitched and cramped. Skye opened her mouth again to ask what was going on but it didn’t really fully click until she spotted Jemma jabbing the call button. She pushed the rolling tray away from the bed and stood up but moved closer to the head of the bed rather than backing away. Skye had been around sick people for a large portion of her life, of all different ages, with all different illnesses. She’d seen some terrible things happen, either to people she’d befriended or to strangers in the chemo lab. She didn’t know exactly what to do in this situation, but she knew she didn’t want to leave Jemma’s side. She wanted to say it was okay but she knew whatever was happening wasn’t ‘okay,’ but she mostly meant that it was okay, she was strong enough to stay - and she definitely didn’t want to leave when there were no medical staff in the room yet either. Her heart began to pound against her ribs like an out of control jackhammer as her eyes flicked to the monitors Jemma was connected to as various steady sounds began to go haywire, changing to erratic rhythms and even setting an alarm or two off. She stayed rooted to the spot by the head of Jemma’s bed, her hands poised in the air ready to reach but she didn’t know what to reach for. “Jem-,” 

Before Skye could finish her name, Jemma’s head fell back and her body began to convulse; every muscle in her body appeared to stiffen and relax and varying speeds and severities. Her back arched and her limbs shot down at her sides, her head started a pattern of rising and slamming back against the pillow just as a slew of doctors and nurses rushed into the room.    
  
Feeling helpless about her own condition was one thing, but Skye wasn’t used to feeling this utterly helpless about someone else in this kind of condition. She had the urge to reach out and stop Jemma from bounding around the bed but was worried that would hurt her further so she braced herself by the raised bar at the side of the bed so that her hands would at least cushion the bars if Jemma’s head slammed to the side since there was no pillow there. 

A nurse gently but quickly pulled Skye away from Jemma and to the corner of the room while another lowered Jemma’s bed so she was lying flat on her back as she continued to shake and spasm. The doctor called for diazepam and a few moments after the injection to Jemma’s IV was complete, her body stilled. One of the nurses adjusted Jemma’s beanie and affectionately rubbed her cheek, whispering words of comfort to her as the doctor prepared to leave.    
  
“She’s alright for now. Seizures are to be expected with her tumor.” The nurse told Skye as the room began to clear.

Skye shuffled back quickly when the nurse pulled at her and stared with wide eyes and concern etched into every crease of her face. She didn’t say anything to the doctors or the nurses, one because she knew they knew what they were doing and two because words were actually stuck in her throat. 

Skye’s eyes clouded with tears as she watched it all happen. It felt simultaneously like it happened so fast but also in slow motion. Before she’d even fully processed all of it, the room was clearing and Jemma was lying still on the bed. She wondered if they would still take her to her radiation treatments after something like that. She wondered how long it would take before Jemma would wake again and as soon as the thought hit her head, Skye knew she was going to plant herself in the visitor’s chair and stay put for the night right here in Jemma’s room. “H-How often does she...do they happen, usually?” She asked, her voice croaking out much more timid than its usual carefree and even lilt. 

“Sometimes a few times a week, sometimes multiple times a day, it varies.” The nurse informed Skye gently, putting a hand on her shoulder and squeezing a bit to try to comfort her. Unfortunately she couldn’t share much more than that, so she told Skye that Jemma was alright for now and left her to her privacy with Jemma. It usually didn’t take long for her to come around and she was sure Skye would want to be by her bedside for it.

Skye nodded to thank the nurse but couldn’t make herself speak again right away as she tried to imagine what it must feel like for a seizure like that to happen multiple times a day. A shudder rolled down her spine and then a moment later she was moving again. She moved back toward the head of the bed, forgetting herself for the moment, she picked up Jemma’s right hand with her right hand, slipping hers palm up under Jemma’s and curling her fingers around Jemma’s thumb and the heel of her hand. Her left hand reached out and the pads of her fingers moved over the smooth skin of Jemma’s head and down along her cheek. It was reckless of her, really, but Skye leaned over and very quickly and very gently kissed Jemma’s forehead. “You just rest however long you need okay? I’ll be here,” She murmured, quiet yes but the timidness gone in favor of just letting Jemma know that she wasn’t there alone now that the seizure was over. 

It took a little more than ten minutes for Jemma to come around. She inhaled sharply and her eyes squinted and fluttered open, resisting the harsh lighting of the hospital. She glanced to the side and was startled to find Skye leaning over her. It was then that she realized that her hand was being held and she smiled a bit and squeezed back.   
  
“You stuck around.” Jemma croaked, closing her eyes but still smiling.

“I’ve seen a lot in my day,” Skye squeezed her hand and gently ran her fingers along the top of Jemma’s head. “You can’t scare me away,” she smiled even though Jemma closed her eyes. She was scared, of course. She would have had to have been completely heartless for that scene not to have put a fright of some kind in her. Skye wasn’t the type to flee at the first (or any even) sign of trouble. Her fight or flight mechanics usually opted for ‘fight’ over ‘flight,’ and this was especially true in cases where someone she cared about was involved. They might not have known each other all that long but Skye could see that she cared about what happened to Jemma and they both wanted to get to know each other better, so, she wasn’t afraid of the fact that she felt whatever connection there was (and hopefully would be) between them for however long it was possible. She did make a mental note to do more research on Jemma’s condition so she wouldn’t be quite as shocked next time, so she could be more helpful in some way. “Can I get you anything?” She asked, unsure but wanting to make Jemma as comfortable as possible after what just happened. 

Jemma felt unusually warm and comfortable when Skye touched her head, even over the beanie. Not having hair was usually a sore subject for her, but it didn’t seem to bother her at all where Skye was concerned and it was unimaginably relieving to accept comfort from Skye in a place that had previously caused her anxiety. It made her exhale slowly and her body relaxed into the bed, exhausted from the fit, but she also felt happy in a way. Skye stayed even through some of the worst after only knowing her for a day. There was undeniable potential here and Jemma wasn’t going to waste it even if she was dying.    
  
“Just some water.” Jemma requested softly. “And some of that pizza.” She added with a wide grin and a laugh.

Skye nodded, though she felt reluctant to let go of Jemma at the moment. She also wasn’t sure about the eating and drinking after a seizure but Skye didn’t know enough about it to second guess it. After what the nurse said, she was just going to trust that Jemma knew what she needed. She reached for the buttons on the bed to prop the back of it up so she wasn’t lying prone if she was going to drink and eat and then gave her hand a quick squeeze. Reluctantly, she let go of Jemma, detoured to the end table to rub sanitizer through her hands and then wheeled the rolling table next to the bed. She used the pitcher of water to pour Jemma a cup and stuck a straw in it. She sat back down on the bed by Jemma’s hip and held the cup up, unsure if Jemma would feel alright drinking it on her own or if she’d need help so she held it up in a way that Jemma could decide. “What does it feel like?” Skye asked. “When that happens?” Curiosity getting the better of her. 

“Thank you.” Jemma nodded to Skye and took a few sips from the straw as she tried to come up with an answer for her in words, not just feelings. “It feels like... I don’t know quite how to explain it. It’s an out of body experience though, that’s for sure.” She said, but it didn’t really answer Skye’s question, so she tried again. “Sometimes I’m completely unaware, I’m awake one minute and suddenly I wake up and time has passed. Other times, I can feel it coming and I can feel my muscles tighten against my will. It’s not painful... just annoying and sometimes scary. It makes me feel dazed and confused too, like my brain is truly malfunctioning.” She explained. This was a better answer. There was no way to explain exactly how it felt, but she thought she came close.

Skye set the cup aside when Jemma was finished with it and pulled the rolling table closer without looking away from Jemma as she listened. “And this time,” She said as she grabbed the pizza box and pulled it to her lap, opening it up for Jemma to see which one she wanted. “You knew it was coming on?” She asked over the top of the open pizza box lid. “That’s why you told me to leave?” 

“Yes,” Jemma sighed, “I’m sorry. I didn’t want to scare you away.” She admitted. It couldn’t be easy for Skye to become attached to a dying girl. Jemma knew Skye wasn’t likely to make it to retirement either, but she knew that she was probably going to last longer than herself, so it wasn’t as terrifying for her.

Skye shook her head quickly. "No, no," she rested her hand down from the side of the pizza box to Jemma's leg just above her knee. "You didn't. I mean, I was scared because I was worried when it happened that I couldn't really do anything, I just, y'know, am just...making sure that was the reason and it wasn't something else since I'm still here now and I don't want to force you to put up with my intrusive presence if you'd rather I left you to rest - which would be totally fine if that's what you need by the way," she stopped to breathe when she realized she had inadvertently started rambling. Her cheeks flushed and she ducked her eyes a bit sheepishly. She just wanted to make sure that she wasn't forcing her presence on Jemma if she wanted to be alone, was all.  She wanted very much to stay but she understood if Jemma wanted alone time if that's what she wanted.

“Hey,” Jemma said quickly to try to get Skye’s head back up. She put her hand over Skye’s on her leg and squeezed, “I called you, remember?” She pointed out with a smile. Her free hand came up to Skye’s face and she tilted her chin up so they could make eye contact. “I would love more than anything in the world to be able to kiss you right now, so you should stay.” Jemma whispered. It was a daring thing to say, she knew, but after Skye stayed through her seizure and comforted her this way, it was clear they both had the same attraction to each other, emotionally and physically. It wasn’t like she had anything to lose.

Skye leaned slightly against Jemma's touch as she brought her eyes up. Once again, she was glad she wasn't the one hooked up to monitors at the moment because they would have been reading her erratic heartbeat right now. She tried to fight the urge to kiss Jemma but then Jemma said that stuff about wanting to kiss her and Skye gave in to impulse. There was just a split second where her eyes dropped to Jemma's lips for a moment then jumped back to her eyes just before she leaned over across the pizza box in her lap with a tilt of her head and brought their mouths colliding together. She wasn't hooked to a heart monitor, but Jemma sure was and Skye heard the changes in the various beeping sounds and couldn't help grinning into the kiss. She'd just reached her hand from Jemma's leg to touch the side of her face when someone cleared their throat from the doorway. It was The Enforcer herself. Skye didn't hear her on the first throat clearing, though, as she was a bit preoccupied.

Jemma let herself melt into that kiss and she didn’t even hear her heart monitor going haywire, but she sure felt it in her chest. Her hands were on the sides of Skye’s face and she was almost enveloped in her intense and sudden feelings for Skye when she heard May clearing her throat.    
  
“Skye,” Jemma mumbled against Skye’s lips. She hated to break their kiss but May was standing right there and Skye seemed to be unaware. Jemma was bright red when Skye pulled away, but she was smiling.    
  
“Aren’t you two supposed to be avoiding germs?” May asked skeptically as she entered the room. She cared about the health of the girls, but it was also obvious that they needed some creature comfort and that came in the form of food and company. There was no point in keeping them alive if they weren’t happy, so May sighed and relented, but not before swiping a slice of the so far untouched pizza. “It’s tax.” May explained flatly as she took a bite and headed toward the door again. “Carry on.” She waved her hand above her head behind her as she walked out and closed the door.

Skye ducked her head slightly, her tongue darting out quickly to lick her lips after she pulled back from the kiss and exhaled a chuckle. She was preparing to mount a defense for her impulsive (dangerous?) behavior when May swiped a slice of pizza. In that moment, in Skye's mind, Doctor May had successfully been reprogrammed like the difference in the Terminator between the T1 and T2 movies, from foe to friend. She snickered slightly and looked over at Jemma, still leaning close to her in her spot. "Worth it," she smiled. She meant it to, it was so worth the germ risk even though she knew how serious that risk was for both of them but especially to Skye's compromised immune system.

“Worth what, the loss of the slice of pizza or the possibly deadly germs?” Jemma joked. She knew Skye was taking a risk by kissing her, but hell, they were dying anyway and any germs Jemma may have had already gone to Skye, so what was the harm in kissing her again?   


“Both,” The mirth returned to her eyes as Skye said it with a relaxed but crooked grin.   
  
“Come here,” Jemma grinned and grabbed for the neck of Skye’s shirt, tugging to indicate that she should get up on the bed and closer to her.

“As you wish!” She wasn’t going to argue with getting close, physically, to Jemma at the command. She set the box down on the table, kicked her sneakers off and out of the way and climbed into the bed. As she settled down next to Jemma, she leaned in further with the tug of her shirt, eager to kiss her again hopefully this time without interruption, at least for a little while. 

“Wonderful.” Jemma murmured across Skye’s lips. She kicked off her blanket and hooked one leg around Skye’s to hold her close and make sure she didn’t fall off the bed.

Skye was contemplating asking if it was alright to get into these kinds of activities so soon after she’d had a seizure but the moment Jemma’s leg hooked around hers, Skye’s mind went blank. Her hand reflexively came up and caught around the edge of her hip and back of her thigh on the leg that hooked over hers and she was only mildly aware of the soft hum that tried to escape her throat only to tangle slightly in her vocal chords. Her free hand came to rest along the back of Jemma’s jaw, fingers stretching to curl along the back curve of her neck as if to pull her closer though she wasn’t all that much room in between them. 

It was crazy, that Jemma could find something like this while receiving chemo. She’d never felt as intensely for someone so immediately, but she supposed everything moved faster when there wasn’t much time left. She lost herself in that kiss and held on to Skye’s waist like she might just die if she let go. There were a lot of things Jemma knew she was going to miss out on, but it was at that moment that she knew that she wasn’t going to miss out on love. She was going to fall in love with Skye, if she hadn’t already.    


Skye knew what it was like to lose people. She’d survived this cancer twice. You couldn’t make it two decades being in and out of treatment for a disease and not have lost friends along the way and that wasn’t even taking into account the more natural loss of otherwise healthy family or friends. She wasn’t about to look a gift horse in the mouth and second guess the intensity of feelings surrounding a connection with Jemma. Instead, she already knew she was going to foster this as far as it would go, until one of them dropped, whichever one of them it was that lost the battle first. 

When her lungs demanded air lest she possibly pass out Skye reluctantly broke the kiss but didn’t move far away, just brought her forehead to rest against Jemma’s. “I’d really...like to make a habit out of you,” she murmured through a breathless chuckle. One thumb pad stroked across Jemma’s cheekbone, ghost light to the touch, the other across her hip with an equally feather light touch. 

“Oh really?” Jemma questioned teasingly and playfully. “I suppose you’ll just have to stop in visits when you aren’t working then.” She shrugged nonchalantly as though it didn’t matter when Skye came in, but it was all for show and she knew she wanted Skye to visit as often as she could. It would be a lot to ask, hoping for Skye to come into the hospital on days where she didn’t have to enter the dreaded doors for her treatments, but she was going to hope for it anyway.    
  
“We can’t waste the pizza.” Jemma cleared her throat to hide how flustered she was and scooted over on the bed so Skye could lay in it with her while they ate the pizza, and maybe they could find something good to watch on the tv.

Skye leaned over as they shuffled on the bed and kissed Jemma once more, this one just a gentle little kiss to her temple. It was easy to tuck in next to Jemma, they seemed to fit rather perfectly together. Skye wasn’t sure she should be surprised by that but it made her genuinely happy in the warmer parts of her chest in a way she couldn’t really describe. She let Jemma pick what they watched as they dug into the pizza for their tasting adventure as she would have been content to watch pretty much anything so long as she was laying here with Jemma. 

“So what’s the verdict?” Skye asked. “Which did you like the best?” Obviously they didn’t scarf down all those slices of pizza but they did split slices so they could taste test each one. 

“Peaches and mozzarella takes the cake... or in this case, the pie.” Jemma said through her last bite of crust from what needed to be her last slice of pizza so she didn’t get sick. She probably would anyway, but this way it wouldn’t be as bad, or at least she hoped. “Thank you again for the wonderful hospital date.” She said after swallowing. They were still next to each other in the bed and Jemma didn’t want it to be over, but it was nearing time for her radiation treatment. They had a few minutes though, so Jemma wrapped her arms around Skye’s arm and rested her head on Skye’s shoulder.

Skye grinned. “I think I’m more fond of the Beet pesto and kale than I thought I was gonna be,” she confessed. She shifted when Jemma curled into her and bent her arm only so she could seek on one of Jemma’s hands to lock their fingers together. She lifted up her free hand and gently pushed Jemma’s radioactive beanie back so she could place a proper little kiss to the top of her head. She moved the beanie back into properly place and tapped the little radioactive symbol with finger. “I should be thanking you,” She said, “you’re the one who asked me out on this date.” Even Skye could hear the happy, content tone of her voice as she spoke softly. 

“I’ll make sure to ask again.” Jemma promised, nuzzling into Skye’s shoulder and squeezing her hand. In a few minutes, she was going to have to get radiation therapy, but for now, she just held Skye and enjoyed every second she was alive.


	4. Definitely Try That

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Updates for two stories in one day? What kind of madness.....! 
> 
> <3
> 
> ___________________

After a week of Skye popping into the hospital near constantly (and even bringing her laptop to get work done while Jemma was at Radiation or napping off her treatments), Skye had a surprise for Jemma. She’d spent a great deal of time phoning, emailing and texting in order to arrange this surprise, all without it getting back to Jemma. Suffice it to say, Skye was a little impressed with herself but this was besides the point. It was a Saturday. Saturdays meant neither of them had a chemo session and it meant Jemma didn’t have a radiation treatment. Because of this, she managed to convince Doctor May that it would greatly benefit Jemma to have dinner outside the hospital at a very fancy restaurant that was less than a mile from the hospital. 

Skye had arranged for reservations for a nicely secluded table in the restaurant so they could be out among people but still far enough away to avoid too much contamination while still having some publicly private date time. She wanted to get Jemma out of the hospital, even if only for a couple of hours. It wasn’t right that she was facing down a death sentence and she was stuck inside what amounted to a prison. Doctor May had laid out ground rules for her. Jemma was to go in a wheelchair (check), and her IV bag had to come with them (check, because it could be attached to the wheelchair). Skye had gone multiple steps further to inform the restaurant (an over the top fancy fine dining ‘you-should-be-in-your-fanciest-clothes-to-go-here’ Italian restaurant) of the situation for their date so that they would know that Skye and Jemma would be in their comfortable clothes, Jemma would be in the wheelchair with her IV line and that if they needed assistance, it would likely need to be in the form of a swift emergency call for an ambulance. She was also planning on grabbing a Lyft for them that would fit the wheelchair in the back to drive them to the restaurant even though it was a short distance away. Precautions were precautions and she didn’t mind any amount of spoiling that would be taking place because of all people, Jemma definitely deserved some spoiling. 

So, after telling Jemma that she wasn’t going to be able to come up on Saturday, with the excuse that she had to catch up on some work, Skye waited (painfully so, because she wanted to be at the hospital with Jemma to begin with) until almost five in the evening to leave her apartment. She’d worked it out with Elena, Mack and Fitz to help her out as well in making sure Jemma got herself a good and proper rest during the day on Saturday so she wouldn’t be too worn out. She also had them ready to notify her if any seizures happened so she could work on rescheduling things if needed. 

The stars, for once, seemed to align properly, so Skye arrived in her comfy, beat up and torn jeans, a blue plaid button down shirt with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows and secured with the button straps on them and her black leather jacket over top. She climbed into the wheelchair she’d need to put Jemma in and dropped a gift box and the bouquet of flowers she brought for Jemma into her lap. No stranger to wheelchairs and having raced them quite a bit in her hospital days from childhood on up, Skye made sure the coast was clear and then let out a whoop as she raced the wheelchair as fast as her arms could take it down the hall until she came skidding to a slightly bumpy stop, wheeling the chair to the side just outside the threshold of Jemma’s door so she was facing forward toward the door when she stopped. 

She paused (for effect of course) and let a slow, devilish grin spread across all the features of her face. “Hey, Gorgeous!” She smoothly wheeled her way into the room, leaned back slightly to balance on the back wheels, the front wheels and her feet angled up in the air as she rocked the wheels slightly like a champ. “I’ve come to bust you out of this prison - whattaya say we blow this popsicle stand, toots?” she asked in her best imitation of a 1920s mob gangster accent with a bounce or two of her eyebrows. Doctor May, who knew the timing of all of this, was already bringing up the rear, leaning in the doorframe of the room with her arms crossed and trying her absolute best to cover up the smirk she wanted to give Skye’s antics with a somewhat disapproving scowl even though she had indeed approved the plan Skye put into motion. 

“Skye!” Jemma exclaimed, dropping the book in her lap in surprise when her (dare she say girlfriend?) appeared in the room in the wheelchair. For a moment she was concerned that something was wrong, because why would Skye be in a wheelchair in the hospital when she said she had to work unless something was wrong? But, of course, her nerves wore off and she realized Skye was up to something. When Skye spoke, she realized it was a preplanned breakout and her first reaction was for happy tears to spring to her eyes and for her to start crying. It was such a lovely surprise and she didn’t know how to handle it emotionally, but she nodded furiously as she wiped away her own tears and let out what sounded like a mix of a sob and a laugh.

As soon as she saw the tears, Skye set the wheelchair right, grabbed the flowers and the gift wrapped package from her lap. She set them at the foot of the bed and stepped over to the head of the bed right away. She framed Jemma’s face with both her hands, wiped at those tears with her thumbs and leaned over with what she considered reckless abandon at every point and caught Jemma’s mouth in a toe-curling kiss. She would have spent longer than a few long drawn out seconds on that kiss but Doctor May loudly cleared her throat from the doorway behind her and she broke away with a chuckle. “You don’t have to change but you can if you want to, completely up to you. We’re going to dinner at that fancy Italian place down the road - there’s a Lyft already waiting to take us there. But first,” She grabbed the flowers and the gift package and brought them over to Jemma. The flowers, for now, she set down on the rolling table next to the bed and the gift box she held out to Jemma. Inside were two items, one was a wig that looked fairly similar to some of the pictures Jemma had shown her from before she’d lost her hair and the other was a very brightly colored headscarf that featured all sorts of wild flowers similar to the ones Skye kept bringing her in bouquet form. She knew the hair thing caused Jemma a lot of anxiety, though truth be told, Skye thought Jemma was the most beautiful woman she’d ever seen and she’d never known Jemma with hair, so. She wanted Jemma to feel comfortable though, so she gave her the option - her radioactive beanie would be fine if she preferred it, or the scarf or the wig or nothing at all but her bald head - whatever made Jemma most comfortable for this date night out, that was the goal after all.

“Oh, Skye, you didn’t have to do all this!” Jemma sniffled, but the kiss pulled a smile out of her and she took the gift with gentle hands. She unwrapped it slowly and when she opened the box, she nearly dropped it in her lap. Wigs like this were expensive, and even if they weren’t, it was still a massively meaningful gift and Jemma quickly threw her arms around Skye’s shoulders and jerked her closer, squeezing her tightly and whispering ‘thank you’s.

What was Skye’s money good for if it wasn’t for spending? And she wanted to spend it on Jemma, especially things that made her happy enough to bear hug her like that. “I wanted to do all of it,” She wrapped her arms firmly around Jemma and squeezed her as she turned her head and peppered kisses along her shoulder and the crook of her neck - this time momentarily ignoring the way May cleared her throat again (was that a chuckle from The Enforcer too??). She leaned back and flashed Jemma a bright smile again. “What d’you say we take this date on the road?” she asked. “Feeling up for it?” She wanted to make sure. 

“Of course!” Jemma practically yelled with excitement. She pulled off her hat and spent a minute fixing the wig on her head, and then she folded the headscarf to tie around her head on top of the wig like a headband. “How does it look?” She asked once she finished fiddling with it.

Skye laughed, a deep one from her belly as her head tipped back at Jemma’s excitement. “You look gorgeous,” Skye assured her and she absolutely meant it, but she also meant it when she leaned over  so their faces were inches apart the ends of their noses practically touching and said, “But that’s nothing new, now is it?” and kissed her once more. This time she made sure to pull back and she took a step back so she could hold her hands out to help Jemma up out of bed. May moved from the doorframe then to wheel the chair over and set the locks then started to move Jemma’s IV bag from the pole by the bed to the hook on the chair. 

“Thank you.” Jemma said again, already feeling like she was on repeat. She leaned on Skye and May and eventually got settled in the wheelchair, IV bag and all. Jemma twisted in the chair to look up at Skye behind her as she started to move and be wheeled out of the room.    
  
“Now don’t you crazy kids have too much fun.” May called out down the hall as they left. “And don’t forget to use hand sanitizer!”

“Yes, Mom!” Skye called back over her shoulder with a silly grin on her face as she blew May a kiss from up the hall. She turned around and grinned broader when she saw Jemma looking at her. “You’re so distracting,” She teased before she leaned over and kissed Jemma’s forehead. She stopped by one of the hand sanitizer stations since she knew May was still watching them and rubbed some of it through her hands. Because they were going to be in a Lyft and then talking with people at the restaurant, Skye pulled a mask from her pocket. When around her neck it looked like an infinity scarf but could be pulled up for proper mask protection over her mouth and nose when she needed it, like when the servers and such would stop by the table and all. Once they made it outside, Skye and their Lyft driver helped Jemma into the SUV, bringing the IV bag with her for in her lap for the short drive while the wheelchair itself was folded and in the back of the suv. It took just a few minutes to arrive and Skye made sure to give the driver a big tip for his help since it was a short ride and since she’d be calling him later for a return trip. A few minutes after that, they were on their way into the restaurant and a hostess brought them over to their table. Skye’s stomach grumbled. She’d been so busy making sure all the plans were in place, she had accidentally skipped lunch. 

Jemma shrunk into her seat a bit as the wheelchair was rolled through the restaurant and brought over to the table. People were staring, and she felt out of place in her sweatpants and tshirt with an IV bag attached to the port in her chest. It was all very stressful, but the moment they got to the table in the corner and Jemma met eyes with Skye it all seemed to go away.    
  
“This is amazing, Skye, really.” Jemma insisted. She certainly hadn’t expected anything like it.

Skye wasn’t actually aware of people staring. Then again, if she had been, she would have ignored it anyway. But the fact of the matter was, Skye was solely focused on making sure they had a nice ‘normal’ romantic evening in a normal place.  One of the things Skye had asked for with their table was to make sure it wasn’t a booth and that it was round and this was precisely because, after she pulled her jacket off and draped it on the back of an extra chair, she moved her own chair right over next to Jemma’s. She tugged her mask down to hang around her neck then picked Jemma’s hand up in her own. She brought Jemma’s hand up and kissed the back of it as she draped her other arm along Jemma’s back. Thankfully, their table was obstructed from a lot of the restaurant’s view so at least they didn’t have to worry too much about prying eyes. 

“I have to confess that I lied to you about having to work today,” She said even though she was sure Jemma had figured it out. “I was afraid I wouldn’t able to keep my hands or mouth to myself and would tire you out before we ever got to the surprise,” That and she’d been making sure all the plans ran as smoothly as possible. “I just wanted to take you out of there for the closest thing to normalcy we could manage for a little while,” She smiled. 

“Oh really?” Jemma playfully questioned Skye’s comment about tiring her out. They had been making out quite a bit in their free time along with getting to know each other, but who could blame them? Any day could be the last so there was nothing to lose except time.    
  
“I am having a good time. It’s nice to get out. Though it doesn’t quite feel normal.” Jemma said with a chuckle, gesturing down to her sweatpants and then up to the IV bag. “Thank you though. Again. I love it.”

"Most definitely," Skye grinned.  "You heard Elena when she caught us the other day - 'impulse control yourself, Nena!''" She mimicked Elena's accent while narrowing her eyes and made a show of letting go of Jemma's hand just so she could mimic Elena's hand gestures too before she broke into snickers.    
  
She smiled,  genuinely happy to be out with Jemma and relieved they things were going well so far. She leaned over to steal a kiss and only pulled back just enough to look Jemma in the eyes, her own expression filled with a slightly moony, clearly overly affectionate gaze. "You should know that my intentions are to make you as blindingly happy as possible while both bringing as much of the world back to you and you back to the world as possible," she paused a beat and added, "With a dangerous amount of physical affection when we fail at our 'impulse control problems.'" Skye smiled.

“I think I can get on board with that.” Jemma giggled and leaned over to steal another quick, chaste kiss from Skye. They had come a long way in a short week and in Jemma’s opinion, she couldn’t have been luckier than she was the day Skye plopped down in the recliner next to her.                                                                                                                       
In the next moment, the waiter approached them. He only spent a brief moment staring at the two of them before he realized he was being impolite and asked them for their drink order.    
  
“Water is fine for me, the food will be enough of a treat.” Jemma smiled and grabbed for Skye’s hand as another way to thank her.

Skye had very quickly discovered that it didn’t matter what kind of kiss it was, if it was coming from Jemma, it made her her heartbeat wildly and filled her with a content. She knew they likely would have moved slower had they not met under the medical circumstances which they’d met under, but...who’s to say they would have met at all had it not been fro their respective prognoses. Skye was still smiling at Jemma during the waiter’s temporary stare. It was always difficult, bringing herself to pay attention to something or someone when Jemma was also in the room. Skye had a clear bias. 

“I’ll have a water and a cola,” Skye added as she squeezed Jemma’s hand and thanked the server. Her attention shifted right back to Jemma immediately. “How was your day today?” She sked. “Did you get to facetime with them at all?” 

“My parents?” Jemma asked for clarification after the waiter handed them menus and left. “Yes, I spoke with them around noon. I told them about you.” She said, leaning against Skye’s shoulder and propping up a menu on the table for them to both read (and to block them from the public as she tilted her head up and kissed her again). “They’re happy I have someone around to help me, and they want to meet you.” Jemma chuckled. “I told them we’ve only met a week but they’re acting like I’m getting married.” She jested. “It’s probably because I haven’t exactly… dated much.” 

Skye nodded and reflexively leaned the side of her head down against Jemma’s once Jemma’s head was on her shoulder. It felt like a default. She supposed it was the lack of time but she couldn’t recall finding a default comfortably with someone as quickly as she had with Jemma and that was probably saying something since Skye was pretty open book about meeting, befriending and getting closer with people. She supposed that came from her multiple wars with the grim reaper and having to think about her own mortality from such a young age onward. It didn’t make sense after something like that, to waste time and not live as many experiences as possible. 

“You did, huh?” She asked with a slight chuckle. She couldn’t help but grin as Jemma went on. The mental image of marrying Jemma wasn’t exactly an unwelcome one. It was kind of cute, especially since it came from merely telling Jemma’s parent’s about her. “Do they get to visit you often at all?” She asked, though she’s guessed that they probably didn’t from the fact that Jemma was usually calling or video chatting with them. She turned her head and kissed the top of Jemma’s. “I confess I didn’t bring a ring to this surprise outing, at least,” She joked. “Maybe next one…” She grinned and turned her eyes to the menu as she moved her fingers along Jemma’s back absently. 

“Most of the family money goes into medical bills, so visiting isn’t in the cards unless I’m on my deathbed.” Jemma sighed. She missed her parents, but she was at one of the best cancer hospitals in the United States and her parents were making sacrifices to keep her there. She blushed at Skye’s mention of the ring and wondered if it would be crazy for them to be married before Jemma died, since that meant they’d have been dating for under a year, whenever it was.    
  
“Anyway, let’s order. I can’t waste away a wonderful date talking about my cancer.” Jemma smiled. She gave Skye’s hand a squeeze and looked over to the menu to search for the most unhealthy dish she could find.

As always, Skye was making mental notes about this information. Her dad was close enough to fly in for weekend visits sometimes so she was able to see him fairly regularly and she knew if she told him she missed him, he would hop a plane as soon as he could to see her. It made her sad that Jemma was so much further away from her parents, as she knew emotional connection with relatives (and friends too of course) was one of those things that could bolster a person’s health. 

Her arm curled around Jemma and came to rest along her opposite hip. She’d looked the menu over a few times while waiting to head to the hospital so she had a good idea of the things she wanted to order. She knew she wouldn’t make it through all the dishes and though she didn’t want to be wasteful...well, she wanted to try things even if it was only a few bites or half of each thing to get a taste. When the waiter came, she ordered the squid and artichoke galette for an appetizer, fettuccine with morel mushroom for a pasta side and the whole roasted red snapper with artichoke and yukon gold potatoes for the officially ‘main course.’ She already knew she was going to go big for dessert to, when the time came if Jemma was up for it, by getting the honey custard with prosecco blueberries. Her stomach grumbled as she ordered and then again as she took a drink of her water while Jemma ordered. 

Skye’s cheeks were slightly pink as the waiter scribbled down her order. “I may have forgotten to eat lunch,” She confessed. 

“Skye!” Jemma scolded sternly, “You know you can’t skip meals.” She chastised her, but moved on quickly when the waiter stood there. “Do you think we can just share the massive order you just made? I don’t know what to get.” She chuckled. She figured Skye wouldn’t be able to eat it all and Jemma didn’t have a very big stomach herself, so they could stand to share.

“It wasn’t purposeful! I was distracted with planning!” Skye gave a sheepish little shrug. She’d been distracted with planning and worrying that Jemma might hate this surprise. Thankfully that hadn’t been the case at all, but before she showed up at the hospital it was on the table as a possibility! Skye definitely wouldn’t be able to eat all that food but she wanted to make sure if Jemma wanted anything different they could swap it in. “Yeah, sure, of course,” She nodded as she looked over at Jemma. “Do you want to swap any of the dishes out for something else?” She asked. 

“Let’s keep it the same but add...” Jemma scanned over the menu and picked what she thought was the best sounding that Skye hadn’t already ordered, “The swiss chard gnocchi.” She shrugged, not knowing exactly what it would taste like but hoping for the best. 

Skye grinned and looked up at the waited, who nodded and scribbled the rest down. “I’ll be back with some bread and your starters in a few minutes,” He smiled at them and left the table. 

“Tell me something I don’t already know about you,” Skye said when they were alone again. 

“Hmm...” Jemma murmured, trying to come up with something good. She didn’t want to give something with no value, like her middle name, so she opted for something random about her personality. “The loud, pounding sound of rain on a metal roof makes me excited and happy.” She grinned. “I love the rain.”

Skye often couldn’t help the way she smiled at Jemma, like every little thing she revealed about herself made Skye fall faster and farther for her because that’s exactly what it did. “You picked a great state to get treatment in, in that case,” What with the propensity for thunderstorms of epic proportions. She grinned. “The first time around when I was sick, I had an obsession with wanting to run out into rainstorms and jump around in the puddles.” She smirked a little. “Obviously, this was very much off limits at the time, but damn if I didn’t try the saddest of sad puppy dog eyes at my dad every time it rained hard enough to make deep puddles in the street…” She chuckled. 

“Then next time it rains we will go jump in puddles.” Jemma grinned and announced. She didn’t care if she had to wheel herself out there in the chair, they were going to play in the puddles.

“Deal,” Skye’s grin stretched even further across her face. Quite often, her cheeks wound up hurting within minutes of being in the same room as Jemma, or on a facetime call with her, from all the smiling it caused. “Do you have a list?” Skye asked after she stole a quick little kiss. “Of things you’ve always wanted to do?” 

“You mean a bucket list?” Jemma asked. “I suppose it would be a good idea to have a list of things to do before I die, since it’s coming up.” She chuckled. She knew so many living people with a whole life ahead of them and they already had bucket lists, but here she was, about to die and not sure what she wanted to do at all.   
  
“I suppose I’ve always wanted to try skydiving, but I don’t know how it would work.” Jemma shrugged. It was an appealing idea, but she didn’t know if she would ever be healthy enough to do that kind of thing.

Skye hated the actual term ‘bucket list,’ even though that’s exactly what it was, of course. She’d had multiple different ones over the course of her life, and still had the old ones. Some of the things from the old ones had been crossed off over the years but she kept the old ones just to look at the differences as they’d changed when she’d gotten older. She might have been doing somewhat well comparatively right now but she was pretty sure her current list of sorts was going to be her last iteration of the list. She’d tried to discuss this foreboding feeling with her dad but it had freaked him out to the point that he brushed it off and kept commenting about how it was just another speed bump and she’d beat it just like she had the other times. Skye didn’t have it in her to break his heart with the statistics both of them knew, especially since once she was gone, he’d be alone. Skye picked her water up for a quick sip and honed in on focusing on Jemma’s voice instead of her own thoughts on her own mortality. 

Now that she and Jemma had somehow connected through whatever kind of cruel fate one wanted to label it, she found herself increasingly distraught that Jemma was staring down an inescapable death sentence herself. The thought of Jemma dying made her chest twinge painfully. She knew it was a fact and she knew there was nothing either of them could do about it other than what they were doing right now, trying to live the rest of it to the fullest extent they could. Her head tilted a bit and she let out a soft chuckle. She hadn’t expected skydiving to be one of Jemma’s. “I don’t know, but you know we’re going to have to look into it now,” She grinned. “Maybe they can do it as the kind where you’re hooked up to the instructor so you’re not just up there yourself in case anything goes astray?” 

“Oh god, could you imagine if I had a seizure while falling if I was on my own.” Jemma actually laughed. She had a bad case of gallows humor and she even made the whistling falling sound and then a splat when her hand hit the table. “Definitely with an instructor.” She chuckled. It was horribly disturbing that she found it amusing, but she did. She was terminally ill and the idea of death by jumping out of a plane was quite humorous.    
  
“What about you? Anything crazy you want to accomplish?” Jemma asked, curious to know more about the woman she was quickly getting attached to.

Skye laughed at the sound effects but still closed her eyes shut in a cringe at the mental image. She kissed Jemma’s temple and then leaned back slightly and took a deep breath, which she exhaled in a sigh. She scrunched up her nose. “I’ve had multiple bucket lists since way back when,” She said. “They change over time I guess. But...travelling my way through street food vendors around the world and hugging my way through every culture I can before I kick it is still up there I think, and I’d like to see the northern lights in person rather than photos or videos, but, as for crazy…” She tilted her head and rolled her eyes up in thought. “I think it’d be cool to go on an African Safari?” 

Skye paused a moment and then laughed at herself. “The fist bucket list I made when I was little, I wanted to build an igloo, get a puppy and discover immortality.” She chuckled. 

“That’s very cute.” Jemma giggled at Skye’s items from her first list. “Who knows, maybe your condition will improve and you can do those things.” She shrugged. She knew the statistics were rough, but she was glad Skye didn’t face certain and upcoming death like Jemma did herself. She wished more than anything that Skye could be cured.

“I crossed puppy off the list after the first time I hit the ‘cured’ mark,” Skye smiled and reached for her jacket pocket. She pulled out her phone and tapped through a few albums in her photo gallery and then handed it over to Jemma to take a look. There were photos of eleven year old Skye with a very large, shaggy mutt that looked like he was smiling almost as wide as Skye was. A few of the photos following it were taken right after the pose where the dog that pinned her down and started trying to kill her with puppy kissing while Skye had squealed with glee while trying to free herself. 

“His name was Niffler - he used to steal biscuits from his box in the pantry and try to bring them to me to cheer me up when I was sad or when I got sick again. Used to lay outside my bedroom and howl and cry for hours after my relapse when I was too sick to chance picking up germs from him,” It had broken Skye’s heart on more than one occasion and her dad had had to contend with two sets of sad puppy dog eyes whenever Skye broke down and let him in to cuddle. “He died a couple years ago,” She said as she smiled sadly at the photos of her best four legged friend as Jemma swiped through the years she’d had him and he grew more and more gray as the years progressed. She’d had over a decade with that fluffy, shaggy mutt and he helped get her through a lot of tumultuous times. She was only thankful she hadn’t had to make the choice to put him down because she knew she never would have been able to do it. 

“I’m so sorry.” Jemma gave Skye’s hand a squeeze. It sounded like it had been quite a difficult thing for Skye to lose and Jemma only wished Skye would live long enough to have another puppy.    
  
“I’ve never had a pet, but now I wish that I had.” Jemma sighed. “I suppose it’s just another thing I’ll miss out on.” She said with a passive acceptance on her face and a small shrug of her shoulders.

Skye picked Jemma’s hand up to kiss the back of it after Jemma squeezed her hand. “Life happens,” She shrugged. It had been one of the harder losses of her life even though she had seen it coming. “You know, it sounds to me like,” Skye paused as the server came around with their starting dishes. She thanked the server and then turned back to Jemma. “Sounds to me like you’re going to have to revise up a bucket list so we can start scratching it off,” She smiled. 

“First item on the list...” Jemma started, rolling around a few ideas in her head before she seemed to settle on one. “Go on a wonderful date with a kind, amazing woman: in progress.” She giggled. “Fall in love with a beautiful stranger: check.” She smiled, hoping this went over well with Skye and she realized what she was saying. She knew it had only been a week and love was a strong word, but she’d never so desperately attached herself to someone. She just knew.

Skye was grinning, beaming even, as her cheeks flushed a bit at Jemma’s compliments. She blinked in surprise by the next thing Jemma said but there was a dreamy little crooked smile on her face. She leaned in closer to Jemma. “Already?” she asked. “With who? We’ve only been here like, ten minutes?” She teased, knowing full well that Jemma meant her but playing it up since she’d used the word ‘stranger.’ She knew she and Jemma were practically strangers for the time they knew each other but she couldn’t help the little joke as she was trying to bring her suddenly racing heart back under control to no avail. She did impulsively lean over right afterward to steal a lingering kiss, though, before Jemma could really get a reply out. 

“Some girl I met in chemo.” Jemma shrugged and gave Skye’s shoulder a light, playful shove before the smell of their food reached her nose. Her stomach growled and she grinned.    
  
“Speaking of love, we have a whole table of Italian food waiting.” Jemma joked and chuckled.

As always, Skye just fixed Jemma with a lopsided smile. “After you,” She motioned to the table. This was Jemma’s surprise after all, she should be the first taste tester. She did lean over and kiss the side of Jemma’s head though, just above her ear and softly said into her ear, “I love you, too, Jem.” Sometimes in life, there were just things a person knew. This was one of them. She knew no one else would understand it and that was just fine. It didn’t have to make sense to anyone by the two of them, right? They could work on their own time scale, Skye was perfectly fine with this pace. 

Jemma’s cheeks flushed and an uncontrollable smile stretched across her face when Skye said the words. She had of course heard them from her parents over the years, but with Skye they came with a different feeling that came from deep in her chest that elevated her spirits and gave her light in an otherwise dark situation.    
  
Unable to think of something witty to say back, Jemma stuffed a bite of gnocchi into her mouth and nodded furiously to let Skye know how she felt about it, even pointing with her fork.    
  
“Definitely try that.” Jemma laughed as she took another bite of it.

Skye snickered at the way Jemma’s cheeks puffed out like a chipmunk’s as she stuffed gnocchi into her face. She hoped she could sear that little moment into her memory for...well however long the rest of her life lasted. She picked her fork up and leaned closer to the plate, holding her free hand under her fork to make sure nothing fell on her shirt as she brought the fork to her mouth to take a bite. As it hit across her taste buds, Skye’s eyes closed a second and she let out a hum of approval. This had definitely been the right choice of surprise, for sure. Skye was looking forward to rolling back to the hospital with Jemma and their full bellies and collapsing into bed to sleep off their food comas together.  


End file.
